The court, presided over by Justice Gedeliah Fwomyon, ruled that it had the jurisdiction to try the defendants under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act (TPPA) 2022. The ruling followed an objection by the defendants, who argued that only the Federal High Court had jurisdiction to try offences created under the federal terrorism law. Delivering judgment on the preliminary objections on Tuesday, Justice Fwomyon overruled the arguments of counsel to the defendants and affirmed the jurisdiction of the state High Court to entertain the charges. The judge held that although the TPPA 2022 was a federal legislation, the law did not expressly bar a State High Court from trying offences created under it. The court consequently dismissed the defendants’ objection challenging its jurisdiction to entertain the terrorism charges.