House Of Reps Member Sacked By Supreme Court

 

THE Supreme Court, on Friday, ordered Mr Orker Jev of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), representing Buruku Federal Constituency in the National Assembly to vacate his seat with immediate effect.

Parties in the appeal before the panel were Orker Jev, the appellant, while the first respondent was Serkar Iortyom. 

Jev had gone to Supreme Court to challenge the decision of the Court of Appeal, Makurdi, which affirmed the ruling of the lower court which asked INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to him.

However, delivering judgment on the appeal  on Friday, the apex court ordered INEC to conduct fresh election within 90 days, to fill the vacancy caused by Jev’s removal.

Justice Walter Nkanu, who led the Supreme Court justices, directed that Jev’s name be removed from the ballot papers and replaced with that of the first respondent (Iortyom).

The panel also ordered that the appellant (Jev) “shall pay the sum of N500, 000  to each of the respondents except the second respondent (INEC).

“This appeal is devoid of merit; it is hereby accordingly dismissed. There must be a fresh election to elect a new member for the Buruku Federal Constituency in the National Assembly,” Justice Nkanu said.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Makurdi had in March 2012 upheld the ruling of a Federal High Court, Makurdi, which ordered INEC to the retrieve the certificate of return issued to Jev, and hand same to Mr Iyortyom also of the ACN.

Iyortom had instituted a suit against the ACN, INEC and Mr Jev at the Federal High Court alleging that his name was wrongfully substituted by his party with the name of Jev shortly before the 2011 general elections.

After hearing the suit, the trial court in Makurdi entered judgment in favour of Iortyom on the grounds that the ACN (now APC) erred in law by substituting the name of Iortyom with that of Jev.