Imo federal constituency dispute: Court strikes out Rep Onuoha’s suit

The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a suit filed by Rep Miriam Onuoha (Imo-APC) challenging the recognition of Uchenna Agasu as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for the 2027 election.

Justice Salim Ibrahim, in a judgment, held that the court lacked the jurisdiction to hear and determine the case on the ground that a similar suit had been determined by a court of coordinate jurisdiction.

Justice Ibrahim, who upheld the preliminary objection filed by Agasu, described the suit as “an abuse of court process.”

Although the judgment was delivered on Aug. 24, its certified true copy was made available to newsmen on Friday.

Onuoha, who is the Chairperson of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, had filed the suit to challenge INEC’s recognition of Agasu as party’s candidate.

She had named APC, Agasu and INEC as 1st to 3rd defendants in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1568/2026.

The lawnaker, in the originating motion dated July 20 and filed by George Ibrahim, SAN,.

She sought an order setting aside the purported upload of Agasu’s name by INEC on its portal on July 11 as APC’s candidate for Isiala/Mbano/Okigwe/Onuimo Federal Constituency seat of Imo in the 2027 general elections.

Onuoha sought an order directing the commission to forthwith upload her name as the candidate of APC for the constituency seat.

She also sought an order of injunction restraining Agasu from parading himself as the candidate of the party for the constituency seat, among others.

But APC and Ndubueze disagreed with Onuoha’s submissions.

Agasu, in his preliminary objection filed by his counsel, Prof. Paul Ananaba, SAN, prayed the court to dismiss the suit for being grossly an abuse of the court process.

He argued that the court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case on the ground that an Owerri court had, on June 25, delivered a judgment on a similar case.

He further submitted that the earlier judgment remained subsisting and that the present proceedings amounted, in effect, to an invitation to the instant court to rehear a question already determined by another judge of the same court.

INEC, in its affidavit of facts and written address filed by Johnson Usman, SAN, stated that it would abide by the determination of the court.

Usman further explained that under the prevailing nomination arrangement, political parties themselves uploaded candidates’ particulars through the access granted by the commission.

He stated that the name uploaded by the APC on July 11 was that of Ndubueze and that the said name remained on the portal as at the date of hearing.

Delivering the judgment, Justice Ibrahim said that before going into the substantive suit, the court would look at the preliminary objection filed by Agasu in line with the previous Supreme Court decision.

He agreed with Agasu’s submission that the Owerri’s suit and the instant case bordered on the same subject matter.

“This court does not express any opinion upon whether the judgment of Owoibo, J. was rightly or wrongly decided.

“An allegedly erroneous judgment is not thereby rendered nonexistent.

“Until set aside by a court invested with appellate authority, it remains a subsisting judicial determination which a court of coordinate jurisdiction is bound to respect.

“It follows that having found that this court lacks jurisdiction to hear and determine the plaintiff/respondent’s substantive suit, the proper order to make in the circumstance is to strike out the instant suit.

“I therefore hold that, having regard to the subsisting judgment of the Federal High Court, Owerri Judicial Division, delivered by Hon. Justice I.N. Owoibo on 25th June, 2026 in Suit No. FHC/OW/CS/70/2026.

“The fact that the Federal High Court by virtue of Section 19(1) of the FHC Act which makes the court to be one but based on administrative convenience, the Chief Judge divided the court to different divisions pursuant to the powers of the Chief Judge.

“See Orji v Chima (Supra) per KEKERE-EKUN,JSC (as he then was now CJN) and also to the fact that this is a gross abuse of court process as this court is a court of coordinate jurisdiction with the Owerri division.

“I therefore find merit in the preliminary objection and hold that it ought to be sustained.

“Accordingly, I hereby sustain the preliminary objection and strike out Suit No FHC/ABJ/CS/1569/2026…There shall be no order as to costs,” the judge ruled.