Kogi APC Primaries: Adeyemi Shuns Supreme Court Order to Withdraw Appeal

Smart Adeyemi, a former senator who served as Kogi West’s representative in the 9^th National Assembly, rejected the Supreme Court’s recommendation that he withdraw his petition challenging the procedures followed and results of the governorship primary election held by the Kogi State branch of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

On Thursday, the supreme court made a suggestion that Adeyemi’s appeal against the rulings of the two lower courts regarding the primary election, which took place in Kogi State on April 15, 2023, was incompetent.

Adeyemi had filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court asking for the annulment of the APC primary election that resulted in Usman Ododo serving as the party’s flagbearer for the state’s governorship election scheduled for November 11. The Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal both dismissed the case, though, because it lacked merit.

When hearing the former lawmaker’s appeal on Thursday, the supreme court informed Musibau Adetumbi, SAN, that although the litigant was challenging the concurrent findings of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal that the APC primary election was held in Kogi State, he had not done so or shown that they were perverse.

Adeyemi’s appeal was declared “dead on arrival” by the panel of the supreme court, which was chaired by Justice Inyang Okoro. The panel also advised his counsel that the appeal should be withdrawn.

Nevertheless, Adeyemi’s attorney declared that he would proceed with the appeal. Accordingly, the appeal was heard.