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S/Court Ruling on Imo Will Haunt Nigeria for a Long Time – Justice Nweze
The decision of Nigeria’s Supreme Court on the Imo governorship election is wrong and “will continue to haunt our (Nigeria’s) electoral jurisprudence for a long time to come,” one of the judges of the apex court said on Tuesday.
Centus Nweze, who disagreed with the majority ruling of his six colleagues, said this in his minority judgment.
Mr Nweze, on Tuesday, gave a dissenting judgment in the application filed by Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Mr Ihedioha had asked the apex court to set aside its judgment on Imo governorship that declared Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governor of Imo State.
The former governor was earlier declared the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He and the PDP approached the court after the apex court on January 14 nullified his victory and declared Mr Uzodinma as the winner of the election.
His grounds for appealing the Supreme Court’s decision included the claim that Mr Uzodinma deceived the Supreme Court with his self-tabulated results from 388 polling units, and that based on the results accepted by the Supreme Court, the number of voters in the Imo governorship election outnumber the accredited voters for the election, a situation that would ordinarily invalidate an election.
On Tuesday, the apex court dismissed Mr Ihedioha’s application asking it to reverse its earlier decision.
The court, led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Mohammed, held that it lacked powers to sit on appeal in its own judgment delivered on merit and in accordance with dictates of the law and justice.
In dismissing the application, the justices with the majority judgment include the CJN, Olukayode Ariwoola, Sylvester Ngwuta, Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, Amina Augie and Uwani Abba-Aji.
Mr Nweze was not part of the original seven-member panel that nullified Mr Ihedioha’s election on January 14.
He was added to the panel in place of Amiru Sanusi, who retired from the apex court in January.
In giving his dissenting judgment on Tuesday, Mr Nweze nullified the declaration of Mr Uzodinma as governor on account of the wrong declaration.
He held that Mr Uzodinma mischievously misled the court into unjust conclusion with the unverified votes credited to himself in the disputed 388 polling units.
“In my intimate reading of the January 14 judgment, the meat and substance of Ihedioha’s matter were lost to time frame. This court once set aside its own earlier judgment and therefore cannot use the time frame to extinguish the right of any person.
“This court has powers to overrule itself and can revisit any decision not in accordance with justice,” he said.
According to Mr Nweze, “The decision of the Supreme Court in the instant matter will continue to haunt our electoral jurisprudence for a long time to come.”
He added that without evidence of meeting other constitutional provisions, the court misled itself into declaring Mr Uzodinma as governor.
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The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Amadi, has declined to set up a judicial panel to investigate Governor Siminalayi Fubara, citing a court order.
The Rivers State House of Assembly had requested that Amadi set up a seven-member panel to probe Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, over allegations of gross misconduct.
However, in a letter dated January 20 and addressed to the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, the chief judge cited two court orders barring him from receiving, forwarding, or considering any requests to form such a panel.
The judge stated that the orders were served on his office on January 16, 2026 and remain in force.
The chief judge emphasised that constitutionalism and the rule of law require all authorities to obey subsisting court orders, irrespective of their perception of the orders’ validity.
He referenced legal precedents, noting that in a similar case in 2007, the Chief Judge of Kwara State was condemned for ignoring a restraining court order when setting up an investigative panel, a decision later voided by the Court of Appeal.
Justice Amadi further observed that the Speaker has already filed an appeal against the court orders at the Court of Appeal, adding another layer to the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the allegations.
“By the doctrine of ‘lis pendens’, parties and the court have to await the outcome of the appeal,” he said.
Justice Amadi further stated that the existence of the injunctions and the pending appeal had effectively tied his hands.
“In view of the foregoing, my hand is fettered, as there are subsisting interim orders of injunction and appeal against the said orders. I am therefore legally disabled at this point from exercising my duties under Section 188(5) of the Constitution in the instant,” he said.
The chief judge appealed to the lawmakers to recognise the legal constraints surrounding the matter.
Justice Amadi, therefore, urged the state assembly to be “magnanimous enough to appreciate the legal position of the matter.”
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has reportedly affirmed the removal of Julius Abure as the national chairman of the Labour Party, LP.
The Court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to recognize the Senator Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the party’s lawful leadership.
The development was disclosed by human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, in a post on X, where he said he was present at the Federal High Court when the judgment was delivered in a related case.
Effiong stated that Justice Lifu delivering judgment on Wednesday, upheld the Nenadi Usman-led committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party, reaffirming that Abure’s tenure had elapsed in line with an earlier Supreme Court judgment.
The court consequently directed INEC to immediately recognize Nenadi Usman as the party’s leader.
He wrote: “I am currently before the Federal High Court in Abuja for a case. I listened to judgement delivered in an another case.
“Honourable Justice Lifu has just upheld Senator Nnadi Esther Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party.
“The Judge reaffirmed that by the Supreme Court’s judgement, Julius Abure’s tenure had since elapsed.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
