Incumbent Senator representing Delta Central, Chief Ovie Omo-Agege, has insisted that the status of all winning candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State remains valid.
Omo-Agege’s insistence is coming on the heels of the ruling delivered by the Court of Appeal in Benin on Friday which struck out an application on the ground that Senator Omo-Agege and Rev. Waive could not appeal the Asaba High Court judgement as individuals since they were both members of APC who could appeal the judgement on their behalf.
It will be recalled that the APC in Delta State, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and Rev. Francis Waive had filed an application seeking the leave of Court to join as parties to the Appeal, on behalf of themselves and other candidates of the APC, against the judgement of the Federal High Court sitting in Asaba.
The judgement delivered by Justice Toyin Adegoke of the Federal High Court, Asaba on the 18th of March, 2019 was interpreted by the Chief Cyril Ogodo-led APC executive to have nullified the Delta State Executive Committee led by Prophet Jones Erue’s faction and the candidacies of Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru, Senator Omo-Agege and other candidates of the party.
But Omo-Agege, through his SSA, Communications & Strategy, Godwin Anaughe, in a statement after the Friday ruling, insisted that the Prophet Erue-led executive remained the authentic and legitimate APC Executive Committee of Delta State, in addition to all the candidates of APC in the just-concluded 2019 general elections.
He stated that Friday’s ruling delivered by the Court of Appeal sitting in Benin has not and did not determine the appeal filed before it by the APC, adding that the APC has already filed an appeal against the said judgement.
“It is important to note further that the recent judgement delivered by Justice U. A. Ogakwu of the Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar made it succinctly clear in the case of Sir John Ochala & 5 ORS. VS. Hon. Godwin Etim John and 2 ORS that “ …. It is settled law that a court cannot make a finding that will prejudicial against a person that is neither before it nor a party to the case and cannot in the same vain grant a relief which will affect a person who is not a party in the suit: OKONKWO vs. OKAGBUE (1994) 9 NWLR (PT 368) 301.
“The effect of Order(s) made against persons not joined as a party is that such order is a nullity and of no effect”.
“This remains the position of the law as affirmed by the Supreme Court in plethora of cases, including but not limited to the case of OKONTA VS PHILIP.
“It is therefore foolhardy for anyone to suggest that today’s ruling delivered by the Court of Appeal, Benin City upheld the earlier judgement delivered by the Federal High Court, Asaba and as such touches on the legal rights of the APC candidates in Delta State.
“We reiterate that the Consent Judgement delivered by Justice A.I. Chikere of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja is still valid and subsisting and all the recent happenings in court have neither invalidated nor set aside the Consent Judgement,” the Delta Central Senator reaffirmed.
Omo-Agege, therefore, averred, for the umpteenth time, that himself and other candidates of the APC at the 2019 general elections were not bound by the said judgement delivered by Justice Toyin Adegoke of Federal High Court, Asaba.
According to him, the status of all the candidates of the APC in Delta State for the 2019 general elections remains valid and legitimate.