The Ondo State Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, and his party, the All Progressives Congress, failed on Friday in their bid to have the Federal High Court in Abuja dismiss a pre-election suit seeking the governor’s removal from office.
The suit was instituted by the first runner-up in the September 3, 2016 governorship primaries of the APC in Ondo State, Olusegun Abraham.
Abraham wants the court to declare him as the validly elected candidate of the APC for the governorship election and therefore the governor of the state.
In a ruling on Friday, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba dismissed the separate notices of preliminary objection filed by Akeredolu and the APC against the suit.
Dimgba, however, agreed with the applicants that due to the contentious nature of the dispute in the suit, it was wrongly commenced via originating summons instead of writ of summons, which would entail calling witnesses by the parties.
But rather than dismiss the suit as prayed by Akeredolu and the APC, the judge ordered that the matter be properly commenced via a writ of summons.
The judge, therefore, directed parties to file their pleadings and all necessary processes in the suit on or before November 30.
He adjourned till December 6 and 7 for the hearing.