Federal high court dismisses suit seeking to sack all Abia PDP candidates
By Steve Oko
The Federal High Court sitting in Umuahia, Friday, dismissed suit seeking to sack all the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidates in the 2023 polls in Abia State.
Wawa News Global reports that some aggrieved PDP members and delegates, had gone to the court to seek the nullification of the three-man delegate adhoc congress of the party, claiming it never held.
All seven plaintiffs include Mr Ndudi Nwagbara, Egege Ikedichi, Ochulo Ulonam Juniour, Onyedikachi Abaribe, Smile Esinna, Francis Oparocha and Chikwe Chigozie.
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC; the PDP; and the party’s National Chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, were the first, second and third defendants respectively.
The plaintiffs, among other prayers, sought “A declaration that the purported PDP Ward three (3) Ad-Hoc Delegate Congresses allegedly conducted in Abia State on Friday the 6th day of May 2022 is unauthorized, incompetent, unlawful, illegal, null, void, of no effect whatsoever and that no valid or competent Ward Ad-Hoc Delegates were elected thereat”.
They also sought “A declaration that as a consequence of not having held valid, lawful or competent Ward three (3) Ad-Hoc Delegates Congresses in any of the 184 Wards of Abia State, no competent, lawful or valid Primary elections have been held by the 2nd Defendant, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Abia
State for the purpose of electing its candidates for the public offices of Abia State House of Assembly, Abia State Governor, House of Representatives and Senate representing Abia State at the National Assembly.”
Other prayers of the plaintiffs include:” An order voiding, nullifying, and setting aside the incompetent, invalid and unlawful PDP Ward three (3) Ad-Hoc Delegate Congresses allegedly conducted in Abia State on Friday the 6th day of May 2022.
“An order setting aside nullifying and voiding the primary elections of the 2nd Defendant, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held for the public offices of Abia State House of Assembly, Abia State Governor, House of Representatives and Senate representing Abia State at the National Assembly held without conduct of valid and competent PDP Ward three (3) Ad-Hoc Delegate
Congresses.
Delivering judgement on the matter, presiding Judge, Justice Evelyn Anyadike, held that the conduct of party delegate congress was entirely an internal affairs of a political party and not justiceable in law.
The court held that “no law gives delegates right of action” in court to challenge the conduct of delegate congress.
According to Justice Anyadike, the suit can only be justiceable in the court if it were brought by an aspirant who participated in a primary election.
The court subsequently, dismissed the suit after resolving it is favour of the defendants, declaring that the plaintiffs lacked locus to sue.
Later in an interview, Counsel to the plaintiffs, Nnamdi Ahaiwe, said his clients would decide on the next line of action after a careful study of the judgement.
Ahaiwe
” You know that judgement is how the court interprets a case brought before it. We will go back and read the judgement, and after that, we will take a decision.
” The law has made provisions for other levels of adjudication because it knows that a court can be wrong. So, parties have the right to go to higher courts.”
Speaking also in an interview with Wawa News Global, one of the members of the defendants’ legal team, Professor A.B.C Agbazuere, hailed the judgement, describing it as ” copiously current and accurate”.
” It was currently and accurately decided. The court saw that it was an internal affairs of the party and should not be brought to the court. The plaintiffs were lucky the court did not award them damages.”
The immediate-past Chief of Staff to the Governor who is the PDP candidate for Isiala Ngwa North and Isiala Ngwa South federal constituency expressed delight that the plot to sack all PDP candidates for the 2023 elections in Abia did not succeed.
“They were working to remove all of us through the court like what happened in Rivers State. They came wrongly and we thank God they failed. People sponsoring them will know that we will also win them in the field”
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