A suit seeking the invalidation of Kola Abiola as the People’s Redemption Party’s presidential candidate has been transferred to a special task force of judges for speedy determination.

This came after the presiding judge, Ahmed Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja, proceeded on his annual vacation.

Although the suit was number 15 on Tuesday’s cause list, the matter could not go on due to the absence of Mr Mohammed in court.

The registrar, however, informed that the judge, who was a vacation judge during this year’s annual vacation, had commenced his leave.

The registrar further informed that the chief judge of the court, John Tsoho, had directed that pre-election cases be transferred to the registry for onward transmission to the judicial task force recently constituted.

On November 2, Mr Tsoho constituted the task force of judges to hear and determine all pre-election cases before the court swiftly.

Mr Tsoho said it became necessary to designate a team of judges following the large volume of pre-election suits that have flooded the court.

He said that the judges would have four weeks to dispose of the pre-election cases.

Justice Mohammed had, on October 11, fixed today for hearing the suit filed by Patience Ndidi Key, a female presidential aspirant in the June 5 primaries conducted by the PRP, to challenge the emergence of Mr Abiola as the party’s candidate.

Ms Key, in an originating summons marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1001/2022, had prayed the court to nullify the poll that produced Mr Abiola as the PRP’s presidential candidate.

The presidential candidate is the son of the late MKO Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.

The plaintiff had sued PRP, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Latifu Kolawole Abiola as first, second and third defendants, respectively.

(NAN)