A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Oba Maduabuchi, said the judgment linked to the Youth Party suit cannot stand if the party did not file the case before the Federal High Court.
Speaking during an interview with ARISE News on Thursday, Maduabuchi said a valid judgment depends on the existence of a proper plaintiff and defendants. He said if the Youth Party truly had no involvement in the suit, then the foundation of the judgment becomes questionable.
“Without a proper plaintiff, there cannot be a proper suit,” he said.
“So that means there was no judgment.”
Maduabuchi described the matter as a serious issue for the legal profession, adding that any lawyer found to have filed a case without proper authorisation could face severe sanctions.
“It’s a complete indictment of the integrity of the lawyer,” he said.
“That could result in that lawyer being disbarred forever. I can’t imagine a lawyer going to court in the name of an organisation where he does not have the authority of that organisation.”
He said election-related cases usually contain affidavits and supporting documents that can help identify who authorised the filing.
“Who signed the affidavit? Because without facts, a lawyer cannot act,” he said.
“We are masters of the law. The client is the master of the facts.”
Maduabuchi also questioned who represented the Youth Party during the proceedings.
“In a political matter, it’s extremely difficult. Who represented the Youth Party even once in the court?” he asked.
He said the Youth Party now has the right to approach the court and challenge the judgment.
“The Youth Party has now the one responsibility and the authority to approach the court and say, we never filed a suit,” he said.
“For you to have a valid judgment, there must be a valid plaintiff and valid defendants. If any one of them is missing, then there’s no judgment.”
On the role of the judiciary, Maduabuchi said court records, affidavits and attached identification documents could help trace those involved in filing the suit.
“All we need to do is ask for the file,” he said.
“He sees the name of the person that swore to the affidavit, sees the passport of the person that is on the affidavit. From there, we can begin to trace.”
Asked about possible disciplinary action, Maduabuchi said the matter should be referred to the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee if wrongdoing is established.
“The guy is gone,” he said.
“All I want Umar to do is once they file an application saying set aside this judgment because we didn’t know about it, he simply reports to the legal practitioners disciplinary committee.”
Ademide Adebayo
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