Lying on oath: Supreme Court rules in favour of Buhari on technicality
Lying on Oath: Supreme Court saves Buhari on technical ground
Nigeria’s Supreme Court has rested the case brought against President Muhammadu Buhari bothering on false self-declaration during the electioneering process.
The Suit brought against Buhari, which sought his disqualification, travelled from the lower court up to the Supreme Court and all the courts dismissed the case on technical ground asserting that the case was statute-barred.
The appellants, Kalu Kalu, Labaran Ismail and Hassy El-Kuris, had approached the Supreme Court to nullify the candidacy of President Buhari in the February 23 presidential poll over allegations that he lied under oath.
They claimed that Buhari lied on oath in the form CF001 he submitted to the electoral commission, INEC, for the 2019 election.
In its ruling on Monday, the Supreme Court agreed with the Court of Appeal and the federal high court which had earlier ruled that the suit was statute-barred.
The Federal High Court had on May 2 declined to grant the request of the appellants on the grounds that the suit was not filed within the time allowed by law and therefore sustained the preliminary objection raised by Mr Buhari at the hearing.
The Supreme Court ruling by a five-member panel was read by Mary Odili.