A High Court in Anambra on Wednesday dismissed the suit filed by a lecturer at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (NAU), Dr Chris Abakare, challenging the election of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), NAU branch.
Abakare, a chairmanship aspirant dragged the ASUU-NAU to court unlawfully excluding him from contesting in the July 11 branch elections and prayed the court to set aside the exercise.
The defendants in the suit with suit No. A/295/2018 were Prof. Okey Agu, Dr Okechukwu Nwafor, Prof. Dennis Cariboo (immediate past chairman), Dr Kinsley Ubaoji and Dr Stephen Ufoaroh (the winner of the election).
He prayed the court to restrain Ufoaroh, who was declared winner in the election from parading himself as chairman.
Abakare said he met all the requirements to participate in the election but was wrongly disqualified based on a ‘proposed’ guideline introduced after the process of election had begun.
The defendants had told the court that Abakare did not meet criteria to contest the election because he had not been a convener of ASUU branch activities and 60 per cent attendance of meetings.
Ruling on the matter, Justice Peace Otti of Awka High Court dismissed the suit for lacking in merit.
Otto premised her judgment on Article 14 of the Constitution and Code of Practice of ASUU which provides that all amendments shall take effects immediately after adoption by National Delegate Conference.
Reacting to the ruling, Jack Iyioku, lead counsel to Abakare said the judge did not consider that the process of the election had commenced before the National Executive Council meeting were the constitutional amendment was deliberated.
Iyioku said the amendment was only ‘proposed’ and had not taken effect before the election adding that laws are not applied retroactively.
He said the election committee was inaugurated on April 23, 2018 while the NEC meeting at Abubarka Tarawa Balewa University, Bauchi held between May 4 and May 6, 2018.
“The court admitted that from the ‘affidavit adidem’ of both parties, the electoral process of ASUU-NAU has commenced long before the meeting in Bauchi where the purported ‘proposed amendment’ was deliberated upon,” he said.
Iyioku said the judgment can be appealed.
