“That an interested party can appeal against a decision he is not happy with is not in doubt. That he was not a party in the matter in the lower court does not foreclose him from appealing against the judgment. Once, he can show that he has an interest in the subject matter and in the outcome of the subject matter of the case; he can seek for leave to appeal as an interested party. This is a trite legal position. The Applicant must follow the proper procedure in bringing such application. In Keystone Bank Ltd vs. Embeco (Nig.) Ltd & Ors (2018) LPELR-46178 (CA), this court at held:
“It is not in doubt that Section 243(1) (a) of the amended 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (hereafter to be simply referred to as the Constitution) donates the right of appeal to a party interested and that the said right of appeal can only be exercised by the party interested first procuring the leave of the High Court (i.e. the lower Court) or this Court, to exercise the same. There is a plethora of decided cases dealing not only with what a party who claims to be a party interested must establish to warrant the grant by the Courts of prayers to enable him appeal, but the appropriate procedure to be followed by a party interested in setting in motion the exercise of his right of appeal. One of the cases which I consider to be very illuminating in respect of the procedure to be adopted by an applicant seeking to appeal against a decision of a High Court as an interested party is that of Funduk Engineering Ltd. V. Mcarthur (1996) LPELR 1291 (SC).In the said case, the Supreme Court per Uwais, CJN; dwelling on the proper interpretation to be accorded the provisions of the 1979 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in respect of appeal by a party interested (and which provisions are word for word with those of Section 243(1)(a) of the extant Constitution) said thus: –
‘Now, I think there is some confusion with regard to the prayer in the application in question here for extension of time within which to seek leave to appeal. By the provisions of Section 222 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Cap.62 of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990, only a party to civil proceedings can appeal to the Court of Appeal without any inhibition on his capacity to do so. Any other person who has interest in a case but is not a party to the case, cannot appeal in the proceedings, until he obtains the leave of either the High Court from which the case is being appealed or the Court of Appeal to which the appeal is to be brought. The section further provides that such a right to appeal must be exercised in accordance with any Act or rules of Court applicable which regulate the powers, the practice and the procedure of the Court of Appeal. The section also provides that a party, who desires to appeal as an interested party, has the option to obtain the necessary leave prescribed for doing so, on application to either the High Court which decided the case or the Court of Appeal. The manner in which to make the application is provided by both the Court of Appeal Act, 1976(Cap. 75) and the Court of Appeal Rules, 1981 as amended (Cap.62). Neither the Constitution nor the Court of Appeal Act or the Court of Appeal Rules prescribe any period within which an interested party may bring application for leave to appeal as a person having an interest in the matter.”
By PER E. TOBI,J.C.A in the case of
