The Supreme Court, on Friday, ordered the warring factions of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), led by Amaju Pinnick and Chris Giwa, to return to the Federal High Court, Jos for the expeditious hearing of their matter.
The Apex court in its judgement, declined making any pronouncement on the suit seeking to sack the Pinnick-led executive committee and rather ordered that it be returned to the trial court.
A five-man panel of the court led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, unanimously set aside the judgement of the Court of Appeal in Jos.
The Jos Appeal Court had held that the case could no longer be relisted before the Federal High Court having been earlier withdrawn by the appellants.
The Supreme Court upheld the appellants, Chris Giwa’s contention that they could have the case re-listed before the trial court after their settlement talks broke down but rejected his plea to have the case heard and determined on its merit.
The apex court held that the conditions that could warrant hearing such case which ought to be heard by the Federal High Court had not been met.
Giwa’s board took its case to the Supreme Court praying the apex court to set aside an earlier verdict by the Appeal Court affirming Pinnick as the right leader of the federation.
Before then, a Jos High Court had ruled that Giwa, who was elected by a disputed NFF congress at Chida Hotel, Abuja in Aug. 2014, was duly elected president of the body.
Giwa’s group aver that Pinnick’s election in Warri in 2014 was null and void since it was conducted in defiance of a High Court order, arguing that the defendants cannot gain from disobedience of a court order.
