A High Court in Rivers State presided over by Justice Godswill Obomanu has nullified the LGA and State congresses conducted by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers state.
The court also awarded a cost of N10-million against the defendants (APC & Abdulahi Ganduje) the National Chairman of the party.
Justice Obomanu said that the recent LG and State congresses of the party were in utter disrespect of court order and court processes.
Recall that some members of the party (Okwu Joebrown Dike & Otrs) had filed a lawsuit in court claiming unlawful exclusion from the congresses and Justice Obomanu had on Nov 21 2024 ordered the APC to halt the congresses pending determination of the suit.
In his judgement Justice Obomanu said that the Okocha team, having become aware of the pendency of the court orders issued on November 21, 2024, and served on parties on November 22, 2024, should have halted the congresses.
He had issued an ex parte order stopping the conduct of congresses in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State.
The order was obtained on November 19, 2024, to debar the NWC of the APC which had concluded arrangements for the congresses which began on November 16, 2024 with ward congresses.
An ex parte order is usually issued in matters considered so urgent that it cannot wait for the attention of the other party, and it is generally put in place until further hearings can be held. It is a restraining order.
Now, some APC members who said they bought forms to contest the congresses but were denied the forms went to the high court. They are Okwu Jiebrown Ndike, Peace Oganu, and Samuel Uchegbule for the others in the ca Suit No. PHC/3859/CS/2024.
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A different high court in Port Harcourt had sacked the Okocha-led caretaker committee of the APC, recognizing the Emeka Beke elected executive committee.
The Court also ordered that the Okocha-led APC congresses should not hold. The court had thus halted the marching order on August 16, 2024, by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC to the Caretaker Committee (CTC) of the party in the state to conduct ward, council, and state congresses.
The court order was an experte restraining the national leadership of the APC led by the chairman, Ganduje, the secretary, Surajudeen Ajibola-Basiru, from going ahead to conduct planned congresses scheduled to hold on 11th, 16th and 26th October, 2024.
Other defendants in the suits filed by Peter Ohochukwu and Hajia Ndidi-Chukwuma for themselves and all elected executive members of APC in the state include APC as a party, the Inspector-General of Police, the Nigeria Police, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The justice, Godwin O. Ollor, in his ruling on the ex-parte motion also restrained the defendants either for themselves, their men, officers or agents from conducting, supervising, holding, monitoring or in any other manner conduct election to make up Rivers State Executive Committee of APC in Rivers State.
However the NWC of the party gave a go ahead to the Okocha-led Caretaker Committee to proceed with the congresses and last Saturday went ahead to inaugurate the executives, the Chief Tony Okocha as the state chairman.
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