The Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin on Wednesday struck out an application filed by Dare Akogun challenging the outcome of the 2024 election of the Kwara State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), describing the case as incompetent.
Akogun had approached the appellate court seeking to nullify the election that returned the incumbent Chairman, Abdullateef ‘Lanre’ Ahmed, for a second term in office.
Delivering the ruling during a virtual sitting, a three-member panel led by Justice Abdu Dogo held that the application lacked the merit required for adjudication and consequently struck it out.
Joined as defendants in the suit were Ahmed; former NUJ National President, Christopher Isiguzo; NUJ National Secretary, Achike Jude; former Zone ‘D’ Vice President, Christopher Atsaka; Chairman of the Kwara NUJ Credential Committee, Abdulhamid Funsho Alaiye; the committee’s Secretary, Sulyman Bolaji Gobir; and the NUJ National Secretariat.
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The latest decision adds to Akogun’s earlier legal setback at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Ibadan Division. In that instance, the court had struck out his attempt to be joined in a separate suit filed by Babajide Fadeyi of the Federal Information Chapel, who had challenged his disqualification from contesting the NUJ vice chairmanship position.
The Industrial Court subsequently dismissed the entire suit after Fadeyi applied to withdraw it and awarded a cost of ₦100,000 against him in favour of each of the seven defendants, bringing the total to ₦700,000.
With the appellate court’s ruling, legal efforts to overturn the Kwara NUJ election appear to have reached a dead end, effectively affirming the leadership of Abdullateef ‘Lanre’ Ahmed.
