The Supreme Court in Abuja has imposed a N5 million fine on former presidential candidate Ambrose Albert Owuru for filing a frivolous and vexatious suit aimed at harassing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Owuru, who contested the 2019 presidential election under the Hope Democratic Party (HDP), was ordered to pay the fine to Tinubu.
Justice Uwani Musa Aba-Aji issued the ruling while dismissing Owuru’s latest suit, which sought to remove Tinubu from office as Nigeria’s President. In addition to the fine, the court also directed its Registry not to accept any further frivolous originating summons from Owuru.
During Monday’s proceedings, Owuru, a self-proclaimed lawyer called to the Nigerian Bar in 1984, attempted to argue his case while wearing a wig and gown.
He was instructed to leave the Bar and remove his attire before being allowed to continue. After complying with the order, Owuru struggled to justify his case, despite having had similar suits dismissed three times previously. His explanations were deemed unconvincing by the court.
Justice Aba-Aji criticized Owuru’s conduct, stating that it was unbecoming of a lawyer with over 40 years of experience. The court ultimately dismissed his suit and upheld the N5 million fine against him.
This ruling follows a previous fine of N40 million imposed by the Court of Appeal on Owuru for filing a suit against Tinubu, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and others.
Owuru’s latest suit, marked SC/CV/667/2023, sought to remove President Tinubu on the grounds of alleged non-qualification and illegal usurpation of the office. The suit named former President Muhammadu Buhari, the Attorney General of the Federation, INEC, and Tinubu as defendants.
In his arguments, Owuru, a British-trained lawyer, claimed that he won the 2019 presidential election, but alleged that his mandate was stolen by Buhari.
He also sought to disqualify Tinubu over an alleged forfeiture of $460,000 to the United States related to a drug trafficking case, and accused him of being an agent of the CIA, which he claimed disqualified Tinubu from holding office. Owuru asked the Supreme Court to invoke Section 157 of the 1999 Constitution to remove Tinubu from office and declare him the rightful president.
Be the first to comment