Imo: Supreme Court dismisses Ihedioha’s application to sack Uzodimma

The Supreme Court, on Tuesday, declined an application brought before it by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 governorship election in Imo state, Emeka Ihedioha seeking to sack Governor Hope Uzodinma from office.

Ihedioha said, in his application that Uzodinma was not validly nominated by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to contest the election that led to his first tenure in 2019.

The application further sought to invalidate the years that Uzodinma spent in office as the Governor of Imo state.

Though the appeal was initially brought before the apex court by Mr. Uche Nwosu who was the governorship candidate of the Action Alliance (AA) in the 2019 election, however, the PDP and its own candidate, Emeka Ihedioha, who was declared winner of the election, applied to be joined as interested parties in the matter.

The PDP and its candidate specifically prayed the Supreme Court to give effect to its 2019 verdict that disqualified Nwosu on the ground that he was nominated by both the AA and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to contest the election.

The Appellants argued that if the apex court recognised Nwosu as the candidate of the APC, there was no legal basis for its subsequent judgement that sacked Ihedioha and declared Uzodinma who was also sponsored by the same APC, as the valid winner of the Imo state governorship poll.

Consequently, the PDP urged the apex court to restore its candidate, Ihedioha, back to office, since the APC was precluded from sponsoring two candidates in the election.

In an affidavit filed in support of the application, which was deposed to by a legal practitioner, Adedamola Farokun, PDP, averred that “The third Respondent/Applicant (PDP) is neither in any way seeking a review of the valid, subsisting and well-considered judgement of this court delivered in this appeal in 2019, nor seeking a review of the judgement of this court delivered on January 14, 2020, in SC/462/2019, but humbly seeking that this court give effect to its judgement delivered on December 20, 2019.

“That this court has the constitutional, inherent powers and jurisdiction to grant the reliefs sought and give effects to its judgement. It is in the interest of justice for this court to exercise its wide discretionary powers in favour of granting this application as prayed.”

The deponent, Farokun, averred that Uzodinma was not the candidate of the APC based on the court’s judgement that Nwosu was nominated by both the APC and the AA.

PDP urged the Supreme Court to hold that, “both the AA and APC did not sponsor and/or field any candidate for the governorship election held in Imo State on March 9, 2019, in view of the double nomination of the Appellant/Respondent by the two political parties aforesaid, and his subsequent disqualification as their gubernatorial candidate, as found by this honourable court in its judgement.”

It argued that, in view of the fact that Governor Uzodinma did not contest the election as an independent candidate, there was no legal basis for him to be recognized as the validly elected governor of Imo state.

The applicants contended that there was no basis for the recent election that was held in the state on November 11, since Ihedioha had yet to conclude his tenure.

However, when the matter came up on Tuesday, the apex court held that it had no jurisdiction to entertain the appeal which it described as strange, frivolous, baseless, unwarranted, vexatious and irritating.

Justice Tijjani Abubakar, who delivered the unanimous ruling of the five-member panel of Justices of the court, further held that the motion was a calculated design to demonize the Supreme Court.

The apex court proceeded to award a personal cost of N40 million against Chief Mike Ozehkome (SAN), who represented the PDP and Ihedioha in the matter.

Those to be paid are the Action Peoples Party (APP), Uche Nnadi, Uche Nwosu and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

In the motion considered to be frivolous by the Court, Ozekhome had asked the Court for a consequential order to compel INEC to issue a fresh Certificate of Return to Ihedioha to enable him to spend a four-year tenure as Governor of Imo state

His grouse was that the incumbent governor, Uzodinma unlawfully spent the four years which Ihedioha ought to spend.

Ozekhome in the motion claimed, among others that the APC had no candidate in the 2019 Imo state Governorship election, hence, Uzodinma ought not to have been made governor on the platform of APC.

aimed, among others that the All Progressives Congress (APC) had no candidate in the 2019 Imo Governorship election, hence, Uzodinmma ought not to have been made governor on the platform of APC.

However, the Apex Court dismissed the motion on the ground that it has no jurisdiction to entertain such a motion.

Justice Abubakar held in the ruling that the request was strange, frivolous, baseless, unwarranted, vexatious and irritating.

He further held that the motion was a calculated design to demonise the Supreme Court.

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