Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, has asked the Makurdi Court of Appeal to dismiss former Governor Samuel Ortom’s appeal against a previous High Court decision. The appeal seeks to challenge a commission of inquiry established by Governor Alia to review the state’s income and expenditures from May 2015 to May 2023.

During Thursday’s hearing, Matthew Burkaa, representing the primary respondents, argued that Ortom’s appeal lacked specific grounds and claimed that the High Court’s dismissal was justified, as Ortom’s case was filed outside the permitted timeframe under the Benue High Court Rules and Public Officers Protection Law.

Multiple respondent counsels echoed this, insisting that Ortom’s case was irredeemable. Representing Ortom, Senior Advocate Oba Maduabuchi argued that the Public Officers Protection Law, cited by the High Court, did not apply to cases of judicial review, such as Ortom’s.

The appeal panel, led by Justice Biobele Abraham Georgewill, has reserved its judgment for a later date, to be communicated to the parties.