Ondo PDP crisis: Court to decide application to stay judgment Oct 27

THE legal battle between Ahmed Makarfi and Modu Sheriff led factions of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over who to sponsor between Ibrahim Jimoh and Eyitayo Jegede heightened on Thursday as Justice Okon Abang reserved ruling on three separate applications seeking to join, stay judgment execution and appeal against the judgment that made Jimoh governorship candidate.

Following a fresh application filed by Jegede seeking to be joined and to appeal against the ruling on suit filed by Biyi Foroye, Justice Abang fixed his ruling on the application to October 26.

The judge also reserved decision on the application seeking to stay execution of the judgment of the court delivered on June 29, 2016, filed by the Makarfi-led faction.

Justice Abang had on June 29 ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Ibrahim Jimoh as the candidate of the PDP following a suit over dispute in the leadership of the PDP in Ondo State.

Justice Abang had also declared as illegal the Ahmed Makarfi-led Caretaker Committee of the national leadership of the PDP.

Meanwhile, Justice Abang, yesterday, when the matter came up, granted leave to Jegede to rely on the affidavit earlier filed in support of his motion to join as an interested party and to appeal the decision of the Federal High Court that recognised the Sheriff-led faction of PDP.

In a short ruling on Thursday, Abang overruled the opposition of the counsels to the respondents, which included Ibrahim Jimoh and PDP (Sheriff-led faction), on the affidavit as basis for Jegede to be joined as interested party in appeal.

Earlier, counsel for the first and second respondents, Alex Izinyon, argued that allowing the application to be joined as interested party in the appeal on the basis of a sworn affidavit will be improper.