Edo PDP crisis worsens as court recognises Obaseki’s candidates, orders INEC to publish names

The conflict of confidence rocking the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), assumed a worrisome dimension on Tuesday as a Federal High Court sitting in Benin ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to recognise and publish the names of candidates produced by the Governor Godwin Obaseki faction of the Edo Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as standard-bearers of the party in the forthcoming 2023 elections.

This latest development runs contrary to an earlier judgement of the same Federal High Court, Abuja, presided by Justice Inyang Ekpo, which in May, ordered INEC to recognise the candidates produced by the faction of the National Vice Chairman, South-South, Chief Dan Osi Orbih.

Both courts are of coordinated jurisdiction, only separated by locales.

Delivering judgement on Tuesday, in the suit filed by the Obaseki faction, Justice S.M. Shuaibu, granted all the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs.

The plaintiffs in the later suit included the party’s candidate for Edo South Senatorial District, Matthew Iduoriyekemwen; Sunny Aguebor for Oredo Federal Constituency, and the flag bearer for Akoko Edo Federal Constituency, Kabiru Adjoto, among others.

Amongst the reliefs sought by the plaintiffs is an Order of Court mandating the fourth defendant, INEC, to publish the names of the plaintiffs as the validly elected candidates of the Edo PDP for the 2023 general elections.

The Judge noted that based on past decisions by the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal, the state chapter of a political party is not empowered by law to conduct party primaries and that only the National Working Committee (NWC) of a political party had the power to conduct party primaries.

According to him, “there is nothing before the Honourable Court to show that the primaries in which the 4th to 39th defendants participated were conducted by the National Working Committee of the PDP. Rather, their primaries were conducted by the Edo State chapter of the PDP.”

The Judge held, “In my view, the power of INEC under Section 84 of the Electoral Act is limited to monitoring of party primary elections and does not extend to preparing or declaring the results of that election. This remains the law.”

“In the light of the foregoing, the fourth defendant, INEC, cannot rely on results prepared by the first defendant, Edo PDP,” he noted.

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