The Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out the appeal filed by the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen.
It held that the appeal had been spent and the substantive suit had been heard and concluded at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).
The appeal court ruled that there was no need to go into the merit of the interlocutory appeal challenging the ex parte order of the CCT which ordered Justice Onnoghen to step aside as the CJN.
On the appeal challenging the judgement of the Tribunal delivered on February 13, the appeal court held that there was no record of the said order before it.
It added that as a result of no record of the said proceedings, a decision cannot be entered.
The court, thereafter, struck out the appeal.
Justice Onnoghen had appealed the motion ex parte by the Chairman of the CCT, Danladi Umar, which ordered him to step aside as the CJN pending the determination of his trial.
According to him, the order of the Tribunal was procured behind his back when parties had already joined issues and when the prosecutor had on January 22 told the CCT that the order would be sought on the next adjourned date.
More to follow…
