A Federal Capital High, FCT, sitting at Kubwa, Abuja, presided by Justice K. N. Ogbonnaya has reaffirmed his order that Chief Ikechi Emenike is the authentic Abia State candidate of the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC.
Justice Ogbonnaya had on November 29th 2018 given the order that Emenike is the candidate of the party and directed INEC to publish his name as the candidate, which the commission failed to obey.
But Mr. Uche Ogar who was picked by the other faction of the party and the party, APC, approached the court and filed a motion praying the court for a stay of execution of the order and for the order to be vacated.
However ruling on the motion, Justice Ogbonnaya refused to grant the stay of execution motion and also refused to vacate the order reaffirming but rather reaffirmed her order as valid until it is set aside.
The issue of who is the authentic candidate of the party in the State has been lingering for long following an order secured from an Abia State High Court sitting at Okpuala Ngwa which recognized the state’s party exco that produced Emenike.
But the Oshiomaole led National exco recognized Chief Uche Ogar produced by the faction not favoured by the court order.
In her ruling, Justice Ogbonnaya refused to grant the request of both APC and Ogah’s motion for stay of execution of her earlier judgment which was in favor of the Emma Ndukwe led factional exco which produced Emenike as the governorship candidate of APC in Abia State.
Justice Ogbonnaya described the motion filed by Ogah and APC as “a clear abuse of judicial process, unmeritorious and un-grantable” and reaffirmed her judgment of 29th November 2018 as being valid until set aside.
Justice Ogbonnaya also condemned the action of APC and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for not forwarding Emenike’s name as the authentic governorship candidate of the party in the State.
Justice Ogbonnaya further ruled that the 1st defendant [APC] has no discretion to refuse, reject and/or neglect to act on the list of candidates forwarded to it for onward transmission to the 2nd defendant (INEC).
She also ruled that the court which she presides has the territorial jurisdiction to entertain the matter that was brought before her.
The leadership the Emmanuel Ndukwe’s exco which produced has in the suit sought for the following reliefs from the FCT high court, to declare and reaffirm the leadership of Dr. Emmanuel Ndukwe as the authentic one in Abia state as ordered by Justice Collington Okoroafor.
*An order compelling the 1st defendant to forward the name of the plaintiff being the winner of the primary election as the governorship candidate of the APC in Abia state.
*An order compelling INEC to accept and list the name of the plaintiff being the winner of the governorship primaries conducted by the party on the 30th September, 2018 as the Abia state candidate of APC in the forth-coming governorship elections.
The party also sought an injunction restraining the defendants from through their officials, agents or servants from omitting, removing, swapping the name of the plaintiff.
Reacting to the judgment, Emenike commended the courage of the judgment in upholding the truth, saying that “it is the way it should go, as justice should be served, as the action of Adams Oshiomole the national chairman of APC is very condemnable”.
He said that he does not want to join issues with Oshiomole, as according “this is a man who is a beneficiary of the judiciary but like I said earlier I don’t want to join issues with him as I have respect for the office he occupies”.
