HDP Presidential Candidate Owuru asks Court to stop Tinubu’s inauguration

April 25, (THEWILL) – Presidential candidate of the Hope Democratic Party (HDP) in the 2019 election, Ambrose Albert Owuru, has asked the Court of Appeal, Abuja, to halt the inauguration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2023.

Owuru, a constitutional lawyer in a suit filed on his behalf by Odion Peter, prayed the court to restrain President Muhammadu Buhari, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from inaugurating Tinubu as President.

Owuru, who claimed to be adjudged constitutional winner of the 2019 presidential election, predicated his grouse against the inauguration of Tinubu or anybody else as successor to Buhari on the ground that he is the constitutionally adjudged winner of the 2019 election and has not spent his tenure as required by law.

Among others, Owuru insisted that President Buhari has been usurping his tenure of office since 2019 because the Supreme Court has not determined his petition filed in 2019, in which he challenged the purported declaration of Buhari as the winner of the 2019 presidential election.

In his motion on notice marked CA/CV/259/2023, Owuru applied for “An order of prohibitory injunction compelling Buhari, AGF and INEC, their servants, agents and privies to preserve and give due cognizance and abstain from any further undertaking or engaging in any act of usurpation of adjudged acquired Constitutional rights and mandate as winner of the 2019 presidential election.”

He also applied for another order directing and placing on notice that any form of handover inauguration, organized and superintended by Buhari on 29th May 2023 outside the adjudged winner of the 2019 presidential election, subject to the pending appeal, remains and is viewed as an “interim place holder” administration pending the hearing and determination of his substantive appeal on the constitutional interpretation thereof.

Listed as respondents in the motion on notice are President Muhammadu Buhari, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as 1st to 3rd, respectively.

The motion on notice has been served on President Buhari and AGF through their counsel, Mrs Maimuna Lami Ashiru of the Federal Ministry of Justice in Abuja, while that of the INEC was served through the Head of Legal Department and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), S. O Ibrahim.

In an 8-paragraph supportive affidavit, Owuru prayed the Court for an expeditious hearing before the inauguration of Tinubu.

The affidavit deposed to by an Abuja-based legal practitioner, Adebayo Anafowode, expressed apprehension that Owuru’s suit against Buhari would be rendered nugatory unless given a quick hearing.

Meanwhile, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.