APPEALS COURT RULES IN ATIKU'S FAVOR

UNCLAS ABUJA 000327 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM NI SUBJECT: APPEALS COURT RULES IN ATIKU'S FAVOR REF: ABUJA 321 ¶1. On February 20, Nigeria's Court of Appeal ruled that President Olusegun Obasanjo had no right to declare Vice President Atiku Abubakar's position vacant after he defected to the Action Congress political party. Judge Umaru Abdullahi, president of the Court of Appeal, said that "The president has no power under the constitution... to declare the office of the vice president vacant." The Appeals Court issued an injunction restraining the President from violating the immunity of the Vice President and ordering Obasanjo not to withdraw Atiku's immunities and privileges. According to media sources, the Court also averred that only the Nigerian people have the right to determine the fate of the Vice President. The presidency has announced that it will immediately appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court. Atiku's spokesman, Garba Shehu, hailed the verdict, calling it "a demonstration that the judiciary works in Nigeria." ¶2. The Vice President traveled to London on February 18, amidst fears that the President would order his arrest if so allowed by the Appeals Court ruling. Atiku's associates insist that he traveled to London to present a paper at Chatham House at the invitation of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and not out of fear of arrest. ¶3. The Court of Appeals decision means that Atiku cannot be prosecuted on corruption charges at present, as he retains his constitutional immunity from prosecution. However, the ruling does not guarantee his elibility to contest the April polls. The Vice President was among 90 candidates indicted by a government panel on corruption charges. He and other opposition candidates are challenging these indictments in court, but Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that any candidate indicted for fraud and corruption will be disqualified. CAMPBELL