JUDICIARY
Akwa Ibom APC Governorship Crisis: Court Rules on Ita Enang’s Motion Nov. 28
A Federal High Court (FHC) in Abuja has fixed Nov. 28 to deliver a ruling in a motion filed by Sen. Ita Enang, seeking to be joined in the suit filed by Akanimo Udofia and the All Progressives Congress (APC) against Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Justice Emeka Nwite fixed the date on Monday after counsel for the parties adopted their processes and presented their arguments for and against the motion.
News report that Enang, former Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, had filed the motion on notice marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1290/22, after Justice Nwite granted him leave to do so.
The application, seeking to join Enang, a governorship aspirant of APC as 2nd defendant in the suit, was dated and filed on Oct.
12.Newsmen report that APC and Udofia had sued INEC as the sole defendant in the matter.
Udofia, a factional governorship candidate of the APC, is seeking an order compelling INEC to accept his name as governorship candidate for Akwa Ibom 2023 poll.
He is also asking for an order directing the commission to publish his name as forwarded by the party to it.
The plaintiffs had, in the suit, argued that INEC cannot refuse to publish the name of a person sent to it as the candidate of a political party.
The court after listening to parties in the suit had fixed Oct 6 for judgment.
But the appearance of Enang in court forced the judge to halt the delivery of the judgment.
Enang drew the attention of the court to his presence as a party seeking to be joined in the matter.
He argued that he would be prejudiced if the court delivered its judgment without hearing him out.
Meanwhile, in the affidavit in support of the motion for joinder, Enang averred that contested in the APC Akwa Ibom governorship election of May 26, alongside with the 2nd plaintiff (Udofia) and others.
He argued that the intention of the plaintiffs is to obtained judgment behind his back, having refused to serve him with the court processes knowing that he is a necessary party for the just determination of this suit.
Enang therefore urged the court to grant his application to enable him protect his interest as a candidate of the APC in the governorship election.
When the matter was called, Enang, who appeared for himself, told the court that on Oct 19, he filed better and further affidavit where he exhibited INEC’s report that there was no governorship primary for APC in Akwa Ibom.
He said that Udofia filed the suit despite a similar matter which had been reserved for judgment in Uyo division of the court.
He told Justice Nwite that he had set out the prayers in Abuja and Uyo courts clearly in his points of law filed to make it easier for the court to determine that the two matters are similar.
“My lord, this is the same subject matter, same claim and same parties. I have not seen this practice for a long time.
“As a trustees at the bar, I have not seen a situation where counsel in a matter who have appeared before the same court sitting in another jurisdiction will file a case like,” he said.
He called the attention of the court to FHC’s chief judge’s Practice Direction which states that parties, in a pre-election matter, must filed non-duplicity of suit.
He argued that Udofia and his lawyer filed a non-multiplicity of suit before Abuja court despite a similar matter pending in Uyo court.
He vowed to take up the matter against them.
“On why I should be joined in the suit, I am the appropriate person who contested and won in the election. If any name must be forwarded to INEC, it has to be my name,” he said.
Enang, who alleged that Udofia was not an APC member as at the time the poll was conducted, said he (Udofia) contested in the PDP governorship primary election held on May 25 before coming to contest the APC primary on May 26.
“We have also exhibited the ballot papers of the PDP in our application,” he said.
Lawyer to the plaintiffs, Valentine Offia, opposed the application.
Offia, who urged the court to dismiss Enang’s motion, said the subject matter in the two suits are different.
He said while Udofia is contending INEC’s refusal to accept his name as forwarded to it by APC, Enang’s suit in Uyo stemmed from the election conducted on May 26..
The judge consequently fixed Nov. 28 for ruling on Enang’s motion for joinder.(NAN)
A Kano State High Court has restrained the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, from parading himself as a member of the party.
Justice Usman Malam Na’abba, on Wednesday, made the order, following an exparte motion filed by Dr Ibrahim Sa’ad on behalf of two APC executive members of Ganduje ward, Dawakin-Tofa Local Government Area.
The plaintiffs are the party’s Assistant Secretary, Laminu Sani, and its Legal Adviser, Haladu Gwanjo.
The duo are among the nine ward executive members who suspended Ganduje from the party at the ward level, two days ago.
The respondents in the case include, All Progressives Congress (APC), APC National Working Committee (NWC), APC Kano State Working Committee (KSWC), and Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje.
Granting the motion, Na’abba made an order restraining Ganduje from parading himself as APC National Chairman.
The court further made an order directing Ganduje to henceforth, desist from presiding over all affairs of the APC National Working Committee (NWC).
The court directed the respondents to henceforth maintain status quo ante belum as from April 15, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit on April, 30.
Justice Na’abba also granted the plaintiff’s prayer which ordered the APC SWC, from interfering with the legally and validly considered decision of executives of Ganduje ward, essentially on action endorsed by two thirds majority of the executives as provided by the party constitution.
“An order is hereby granted directing all parties in the suit APC (1st), APC National Working Committee (2nd), Kano State Working Committee APC (3rd), Dr. Abdullah Umar Ganduje (4th), to maintain status quo ante belum as of 15th April, 2024.
“The order thereby restraining the 1st respondent (APC) from recognizing the 4th respondent (Ganduje) as member of APC and prohibiting the 4th respondent (Ganduje) from presiding over any affairs of the NWC and restraining the state Working Committee from interfering with the legal and valid decision of the ward executives of Ganduje ward.
“That the 4th respondent (Ganduje) is prohibited from parading himself as member of APC or doing any act that may portray him or seem to be a member of APC, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit”.
It will be recalled that nine members of the Ganduje ward proclaimed the suspension of the National Chairman of APC over the allegation of corruption slammed on him by the Kano state government.
The nine APC executives said they were prompted to act following a petition written by one Ja’afaru Adamu, a member of APC from Ganduje’s polling unit.
In the petition, Adamu made allegations of corruption charges against the former governor just as he urged the ward leaders to investigate the matter to redeem the dented image of the party against the backdrop of President Bola Tinubu’s fight against corruption.
Following the failure of the Ward Chairman and Secretary to act on the petition, nine members of the executives, led by the legal adviser, acted and took the decision that led to the suspension Ganduje. (NAN)
A Jos Magistrates’ Court, on Wednesday, sentenced a 28-year-old businessman, Peter Sunday to one year imprisonment for stealing motor parts valued at N200,000.
The Magistrate, Mr Shawomi Bokkos, summarily sentenced Sunday after he pleaded guilty to the charge.
Bokkos, however, gave the convict an option to pay N30,000 and a compensation of N100,000 to the complainant.
The magistrate held that the punishment would serve as deterrent to other would-be offenders.
Earlier, the Prosecutor, Insp Labaran Ahmed, told the court that the case was reported on March 19, at the “B” Police station Bukuru by one Stephen Dung, the complainant.
The prosecutor alleged that the convict had trespassed into a mechanic workshop and stole the gearbox.
He told the court that the convict was however, apprehended at the point of his wanting to sell the stolen item.
The offence, according to him, is punishable under the Plateau state Penal Code Law. (NAN)
A Jos Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday sentenced a 29-year-old security guard, Harow Mali to three months imprisonment for stealing 25 litres of diesel.
The Judge, Shawomi Bokkos, summarily sentenced Mali after he pleaded guilty.
Bokkos, however, gave the convict an option to pay N10,000 fine.
The judge said the punishment would serve as deterrent to other would-be offenders.
Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Insp Labaran Ahmed told the court that the case was reported on March 20, at the “A” Police station Jos by one Yab Sunday, the complainant.
The prosecutor said the convict was caught with the 25 litres of diesel by the Police.
The offence, according to him, is punishable under the Plateau state Penal Code Law. (NAN)
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