Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, yesterday, dismissed a suit filed by an elder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Ugochukwu Uchenwa, seeking to outlaw conduct of elections and examinations on Saturdays in Nigeria.
The trial judge threw out the case for being frivolous, vexatious, irritating and baseless. He held that the fundamental rights being claimed by the plaintiff were not at large and cannot be curtailed by government’s policy.
Besides, Justice Omotosho maintained that the church is in the minority in the country and could not impose its doctrine on the other religious denominations that are in the majority.
Uchenwa had initiated the suit on the grounds that fixing elections and examinations on Saturdays violates his rights and other members of his ministry, as it relates to freedom of worship.
While praying the court to declare conduct of elections and examinations on Saturdays as unconstitutional, the plaintiff, in the alternative, urged the court to order the defendants to allow him and other members of his church to vote or write examinations on any other day of the week, including Sundays.
Listed as defendants were the President, Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Minister of Internal Affairs, Joint Admission and Matriculation Examinations (JAMB) and National Examination Council (NECO).’
The rest are West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Business and Technical Examination Board (NABTEB), Council of Legal Education and Ministry of Education.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Benjamin Amaefule, had told the court that his client was only seeking an enforcement of his fundamental rights to freedom of education and freedom to participate in elections and a declaration that the schedule of elections in Nigeria on Saturdays, the “Sabbath day,” was a violation of his fundamental rights to freedom of worship.
The applicant asked the court to make an order mandating the 1st and 2nd respondents (the President and AGF) to declare Saturdays as public holidays just the same way Sundays are public holidays, insisting that Sunday was the first day of the week, while Saturday was the seventh day of the week, hence the Sabbath day.
Responding on behalf of the President and the AGF, Maimuna Shiru, in a 17- paragraph affidavit, prayed the court to dismiss the case for lacking in merit.
On his part, lawyer to WAEC, Friday Chorio, argued that Nigeria was a secular state. Legal representative for JAMB, Safinat Lamidi, in her preliminary objection, prayed the court to dismiss the suit on jurisdiction grounds.
