HON. FATIMA RASAKI PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC PARTY (PDP) V. OLADIMEJI LATEEF AJIJOLA INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC)

SANUSI JSC (Delivering the Lead Judgment): This appeal emanated from the Ekiti Division of the Court of Appeal (the court below) and is against the ruling of the court below, delivered on 4 October 216 in appeal No. CA/EK/51/2015. The gravamen of the appeal is inadequacy or short payment of appropriate filing fees in respect of the appellants’ brief of argument filed in the court below, as appellants’ threat. The alleged inadequacy or short payment of the filing fees in respect of the said process in that court was suo motu raised by the court below which invited the learned counsel to the parties to address it on the issue. After listening to the addresses/or submissions by parties’ learned counsel in the appeal before it, the lower court arrived at the conclusion that there was no competent appellants’ brief of argument and it consequently struck out the appellants’ brief of argument and the entire appeal filed thereat, on the ground that the appellants’ brief of argument filed …