NDDC Appointments: Court strikes out suit against FG

The Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday struck out a suit instituted against the Federal Government challenging alleged uneven distribution of appointments into the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

Delivering judgment, Justice Inyang Ekwo, said the suit was struck out on grounds that the plaintiff, Mrs RitaLori Ogbebor, a woman activist and businesswoman, had no legal right to file the suit.

Justice Ekwo held that Section 2 of the NDDC Act 2000, was specific that “any legal action on any infraction in matters relating to NDDC could only be filed by corporate persons and not individuals such as the plaintiff’’.

According to the judge, the law is clear that the power to file any case to challenge infractions in the NDDC cannot be delegated by proxy to anybody.

The plaintiff, who claimed to be a stakeholder from Itsekiri extraction of Delta, had dragged the federal government, the Attorney-General of the Federation and the NDDC to the court.