The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, has reaffirmed Musa Mohammed as the duly elected Executive President of the Road Transport Employers’ Association of Nigeria (RTEAN).
Delivering judgement, the three-member panel, presided over by Justice Hamma Barka but read by Justice Abba Mohammed, struck out the suit filed by Eriyo Osakpamwan, describing it as academic and lacking in practical relevance, as the tenure in dispute (2018–2023) had already expired and a fresh election had since been conducted.
The panel unanimously agreed that the subject of the appeal had been overtaken by events and that proceeding with the matter would serve no useful legal purpose.
In the lead judgement, Justice Mohammed stated that courts are not venues for academic debate but for resolving live disputes with real legal consequences.
“A suit is academic when it is of no practical value to the parties involved. The tenure in question expired in 2023, and a new leadership is already in place. This court cannot turn back the clock,” he said.
Concurring, Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike held that, “The tenure of Alhaji Musa Mohammed, which is being challenged, elapsed in 2023, while we are now in 2025. This appeal is therefore of no utilitarian value to any of the parties. The appeal before us is now theoretical. Even as at the time the appeal was entered in 2021, there was a live issue between the parties. I concur that the appeal, being academic, ought to be struck out.”