Godwin Emefiele, the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, has withdrawn his suit before a Federal High Court in Abuja in which he sought an injunction against the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Attorney-General of the Federation from halting his presidential bid.
He had asked the court to restrain the INEC and the AGF from stopping or precluding him from participating, voting or being voted for at the congress or convention of any political party based on the provision of Section 84(12) of the Electoral Act 2022.
Following the application, Justice Ahmed Mohammed dismissed the case, stating that Emefiele had the right to withdraw it.
S.T. Maliki, Emefiele’s counsel, announced the withdrawal shortly after the case was called on Monday, adding that a notice of discontinuance had been filed.
Maliki, who was standing in for lead counsel Mike Ozekhome (SAN), said the notice was served on all defendants on May 16, 2022.
Counsel to the Save Nigeria Our Fatherland, John Aikpokpo-Martins, opposed the withdrawal and asked the court to award the sum of N1.5m cost.
But counsel to the AGF and the INEC did not oppose the withdrawal.
