The Seventh Day Adventist Church has signified intentions to problem on the Courtroom of Enchantment, the Federal Excessive Courtroom judgment in Abuja which on Wednesday refused to cease the conduct of elections and examinations on Saturdays within the nation.
Talking with newsmen after the judgment was delivered by Justice James Kolawole Omotoso, counsel to the plaintiff, Benjamin Ahaemefule mentioned his shopper was heading to the Courtroom of Enchantment to additional take a look at the legislation.
Ahaemefule mentioned though his shopper had victory in some points of the swimsuit, they misplaced in the primary swimsuit therefore the necessity to method the appellate court docket.
“The court docket agreed with us that it has jurisdiction to listen to our matter.
“The court docket additionally agreed with us that elder Ugochukwu Uchenwa has the locus standi to institute the motion for the enforcement of his elementary rights and people of your complete members of the Seventh-day Adventist church Nigeria.
“The court docket agreed with us that the rights of the Adventists are breached, nonetheless, it refused to implement our rights, saying that Adventists are a minority and never in majority.
“The court docket held that though our rights are infringed upon, the infringement is legally needed and justifiable.
“So the court docket refused to grant our substantive request as a result of it mentioned that granting it should open a flood gate of litigation by different residents of Nigeria who will come out to implement their very own rights.”
The lawyer held that the court docket erred in legislation when it mentioned that though the Adventists had a reason behind motion and their rights had been infringed upon, such infringement was justified.
“The court docket erred in legislation when it held that though the Adventists have a reason behind motion however that proper can’t be enforced as a result of the Adventists are within the minority,” the lawyer mentioned.
Justice Omotoso had earlier dismissed the swimsuit filed by Ugochukwu Uchenwa, a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, in search of to cease the conduct of elections and examinations on Saturdays.
Justice Omotosho held that the swimsuit was frivolous, vexatious, irritating and baseless.
Ugochukwu Uchenwa, an elder of the church had instructed the court docket in his swimsuit that Saturday was a Sabbath day of worship and fixing examinations and elections on the day was a violation of his and different church members’ elementary rights.
The plaintiff had prayed the court docket to make an order prohibiting the Federal Authorities from additional conducting elections and examinations on Saturdays to cease the disruption of their proper to worship.
Justice Omotosho, in his judgment, held that the basic rights being claimed by the plaintiff weren’t at massive and could possibly be curtailed by a authorities coverage.
Furthermore, the decide mentioned that the Seventh-day Adventist Church was within the minority in Nigeria and its doctrine couldn’t be imposed on the vast majority of different non secular denominations within the nation.
Listed as defendants within the swimsuit had been the President, the Legal professional-Common of the Federation, the Minister of Inside Affairs, the Unbiased Nationwide Electoral Fee (INEC) and the Joint Admission and Matriculation Examinations, JAMB.
Others are the Nationwide Examination Council (NECO), the West African Examination Council (WAEC), the Nationwide Enterprise and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB), the Council of Authorized Schooling and the Ministry of Schooling