Recall Process: Dino Melaye's Lawyer Files Appeal on Ruling

The Senator representing Kogi West, Senator Dino Melaye, will appeal yesterday's ruling by the Federal High Court in Abuja, which reactivated the process for his recall.

The judgment by Justice Nnamdi Dimgba effectively terminated the earlier ex parte order made by Justice John Tsoho which halted the recall process and Senator Melaye and his lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, said they will appeal it.
“The only aspect that we will probably appeal is the aspect that there was no constitutional requirement by INEC as the adjudicator to give a fair hearing to the person being recalled. I am happy that Mr Soyebi, the INEC’s spokesperson has said ‘Oh, we will give them a copy of the petition for the purpose of fair hearing,” Ozekhome said when he appeared on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
“The beauty about this decision is that the court essentially agreed with us. Our major complaint is that Dino Melaye was never even given a copy of this petition to peep into the schedule of the signatories to the petition to recall him. When he went to his constituency, all his constituents that he asked said ‘No, we didn’t append our signatures’.”

While Ozekhome is not interested in the politics behind the recall process, like his client, he alleged that the move was politically motivated.
He said, “Let me make clear again another point which some people don’t seem to know. There is Section 68, subsection 2 of the Constitution still awaiting all the players. Whether they were political motivated or not, Dino Melaye has argued in his case that it is politically motivated because he has issues with the governor.
“Section 68, subsection 2 – what many of them have never looked at is that in this checks and balances (doctrine of separation of powers) the executive has done its own by trying to recall Dino, the judiciary the judiciary has done its own today which decision will be appealed tomorrow.