The court of appeal in Abuja has imposed a hefty fine of N40 million on an Abuja-based lawyer for submitting a frivolous case aimed at halting the inauguration of Bola Tinubu, the president-elect, on May 29. Justice Jamil Tukur, presiding over the case, stated that the court had already heard and delivered its verdict on the matter in 2019. He further emphasized that raising the issue again for litigation was an abuse of the judicial process. Moreover, Justice Tukur highlighted that the supreme court had also addressed the case in 2019 and provided its ruling, while the federal high court had previously determined that the case constituted an abuse of the judicial process earlier this year.
Ambrose Owuru, an Abuja-based lawyer, has been ordered by the Abuja Court of Appeal to pay a fine of N40 million for initiating a baseless lawsuit against the May 29 inauguration of Bola Tinubu, the president-elect. The ruling, delivered by a three-member panel on Thursday, May 24, established that Owuru and his political party, the Hope Democratic Party (HDP), had engaged in an abuse of the court’s processes through their appeal. The panel reached a unanimous decision in this regard.
In delivering the leading judgment, Justice Jamil Tukur upheld that Owuwu’s appeal was essentially requesting the court to reconsider its previous judgment, which was beyond its jurisdiction. The judge emphasized that the court had already addressed the matter as an election petition court following the 2019 general election, and a judgment had been issued on August 22, 2019.