The Court of Appeal, sitting in Makurdi on Wednesday, dismissed the Notice of Appeal filed by Dr Benjamin Omale, Benue State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), citing developments that rendered the issue superfluous for judicial resolution.
The appeal, marked CA/MKD/1199/2024, was initially filed by Dr Omale challenging a decision of the lower court which had earlier given judgment in favour of Mr Augustine Agada as State Chairman of the APC in Benue State.
However, while the appeal was still pending before the appellate court, a significant occurrence changed the political and legal landscape of the case.
Mr Agada’s term ended, prompting a new APC State Congress in Benue State, which elected Dr. Omale as substantive State Chairman.
Following this development, Dr. Omale formally moved to withdraw the appeal, claiming that the subject matter had been overtaken by circumstances and no longer constituted a current conflict requiring adjudication.
In a unanimous decision, the Court of Appeal granted the application and struck out the appeal, holding that there was no longer a live issue for determination.
The court also ruled that each side incur their own costs.
The verdict effectively ended the appellate processes stemming from the earlier leadership conflict inside the Benue APC.
In response to the development, Mr Terfa Jirgba, a top legal practitioner and chieftain of the APC in Benue State, hailed the finding as the logical conclusion of an academic exercise, noting that Mr Agada’s tenure had expired, making further litigation redundant.
According to him, the judiciary ought not to be burdened with matters that have already been overtaken by events, adding that the court acted within its powers in striking out the appeal.
It should be noted that the internal crisis arose from leadership disagreements, which resulted in legal challenges over the validity of the state executive committee.