Appeal Court sets aside judgment sacking Rivers APC candidates

The Appeal Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Thursday set aside the judgment of a Federal High Court that sacked the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Tonye Cole, and other national, state assembly candidates in the state.

This is just as the APC 2023 Campaign Council praised the Appeal Court on the judgment and commended the judiciary for standing on the path of justice.

The APC and its candidates had approached the Appeal Court to challenge a judgement of Justice Emmanuel Obile in the matter filed by one George Orlu and five others challenging the emergence of the candidates.

The Court of Appeal in its decisions in three separate judgments on an appeal brought by Cole, and the National and State Assembly candidates, arising from the earlier judgement set aside the decision of the lower court.

The three-man special panel of the Court of Appeal in their judgment delivered by the lead judge, Justice Muhammed Lawal-Shaibu said George Orlu and five others did not exhaust the internal party mechanism before instituting the suit.

Lawal-Shaibu held that the respondents did not participate in the congress of the APC and so did not have any cause of action and lacked the locus standi to go to court.

The Appeal Court justice further said it was inconceivable for the Federal High Court judge not to have joined some candidates of APC who are interested parties in the suit.

The panel said the nomination of delegates and political parties are purely internal party affairs, and that the court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit ab initio.

He thereafter set aside the judgment against the APC and awarded the sum of N500,000 each for the three cases as costs against the appeal respondents and in favour of APC.

In another 15 grounds of appeal instituted by Senatorial, Federal House of Representatives and State Assembly candidates, the court also held that the aggrieved defendants at appeal could not exhaust the internal mechanisms for reconciliation as provided by the party’s constitution before going to court.

Lawal-Shaibu said the trial judge did something strange when it delivered judgement on the preliminary objection of the defence and the substantive matter just to grant all the prayers of the plaintiff.

He said the judge was in serious error for not going into the merit of the matter, questioning how the court got reasons to deliver its judgement without properly examining the matter.

He said the appeals by APC, Cole and assembly candidates were in merit and are allowed.

In its reaction to the judgment, the Rivers State APC 2023 Campaign Council hailed the judgment, commending the judiciary for standing on the path of justice.

Barr. Sogbeye Eli, Spokesman of the council, told journalists after the court session that the judgement would give Rivers people the opportunity to choose the candidates of their choice at the poll, even as he called on politicians to approach democracy with utmost fairness and a sense of responsibility.

Eli said the APC would commence campaign activities following the judgement, pointing out that the party would not apply to the state to use public schools for its campaigns.

“We will not apply to anybody to use the school. If we do that, it amounts to illegality. We are in court challenging it,” Eli said.

 

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