Paragraph 50
Consolidated petitionsWhere two or more petitions are presented in relation to the same election or return, all the petitions shall be consolidated, considered and be dealt with as one petition unless the Tribunal or Court shall otherwise direct in order to do justice or an objection against one or more of the petitions has been upheld by the Tribunal or Court.
i. Paragraph 50 seeks to avoid waste of time in the hearing of different election petitions arising from the same election.
ii.
It provides for consolidation and hearing of two or more Petitions arising from the same
election.
Read Emakpor & Anor v INEC& Ors (2019) LPELR-48597 (CA), Agoda V Amori ALL FWLR(2016)
PT839 P
1063, PP 1076 PARAS A-D
iii.
Although consolidated actions are tried in the same proceeding, each case remains a
separate and distinct action and has its own judgment given separately at the end of the
common
trial.
Read Nwaeze v. Eze (1999) 3 NWLR (Pt. 595) 410, 416
PETER OBI & Anor. V. INEC & 3 ORS. (PETITIO NO:CA/PEPC/03/2023) (Unreported) @ page 41
“By the import of Section 133 of the Electoral Act, 2022, the contest in an election petition is strictly between the Petitioner who challenges the outcome of the election, the person who was declared the winner of the election, and the Commission that conducted and declared the outcome of the election. This means that every candidate who lost the election and who is desirous of challenging the outcome of the election is expected to file his own petition against the winner of the election, and in so doing, he is not required to join any other candidate who lost the election like himself. It is in furtherance of this that Paragraph 50 of the 1st Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022 requires an Election Tribunal or Court to consolidate two or more petitions which are presented in relation to the same election or return.”
Power of the Courts to order for a consolidation of petitions.
EZEH NICHOLAS CHIKA & 1 OR v. NGWU OSITA & 2 ORS. (EPT/EN/SEN/09/2023) (Unreported) Pg.11, Per Ibitham
The tribunal in discountenancing the Petitioner’s argument that it is statutorily mandatory to grant their application for the consolidation of two similar petitions pending before it held as follows:
“No doubt Paragraph 50 of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022 makes provision for consolidation of petitions challenging the same election as in this case. But in considering such applications the court is to have regard to the interest of justice. Counsel for the Applicants has contended that the operative word in Paragraph 50 of the First Schedule to the Electoral Act, 2022 is “shall”, but a holistic reading of the entire paragraph shows that the court can direct otherwise because it is discretionary.”
