The Supreme Court fined Mike Ozekhome SAN N40 million for submitting a frivolous, vexatious, and unpleasant motion before the court in relation to the governorship of Imo state in 2019.
According to The Nation, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea by Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking a certificate of return as the genuine governor of Imo state on Tuesday, December 5.
Ozekhome, Ihedioha’s lawyer, was fined the amount for filing a motion with the Supreme Court attempting to revalidate the litigation that resulted in his removal as governor of Imo state in 2019.
Justice Tijani Abubakar ordered the senior lawyer to personally pay the N40 million fine to four defendants he dragged before the court.
The Action People’s Party (APP), Uche Nnadi, Uche Nwosu, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are among those who would be compensated.
Ozekhome had requested the Court for a subsequent order to compel INEC to give a second Certificate of Return to Ihedioha, allowing him to serve a four-year term as Governor of Imo. The Court dismissed the motion as frivolous.
His complaint was that the incumbent governor, Hope Uzodinma, had illegally spent the four years that Mr Ihedioha was supposed to spend.
Ozekhome’s motion argued that because the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not field a candidate in the 2019 Imo governorship election, Uzodinmma should not have been appointed governor on the APC platform.
The Apex Court, however, dismissed the motion on the grounds that it lacked authority to hear such a motion.
In his ruling, Justice Abubakar stated that the request was unusual, ridiculous, unjustified, unwarranted, vexatious, and unpleasant.
He went on to say that the move was a premeditated attempt to vilify the Supreme Court.