EBONYI EPIC BATTLE FOR PDP GUBERNATORIAL TICKET AND THE SUPREME COURT DECISION OF 14/9/2022 IN CHIEF CHUKWUMA ODII IFEANYI v. SENATOR JOSEPH OBINNA OGBA & 2 ORS.

INTRODUCTION

In the build-up to the 2022 party primaries, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) scheduled the Ebonyi National/State Assembly primary elections and Governorship primary for 28 and 29 May 2022 respectively but these dates coincided with the date of the National Convention of the party to elect it's Presidential candidate for the 2023 general elections. And given that some of the National delegates who were to vote in the aforesaid Ebonyi State primaries were also part of the delegates that would vote in the National Convention; given the fact that the National electoral committee that would conduct the primary elections did not form a quorum, and coupled with the fact of non-compliance with the party's electoral guidelines, the National Working Committee of the party was constrained to cancel the state primary elections scheduled for 28/29 May, and later rescheduled same to 4 and 5 June 2022. But one of the candidates for the Governorship primary defied the party, went on with the primary election on 29 May and thereafter declared himself winner. For the first time in Nigeria's political history, a person who claims to have 'won' an election rushed to court to pray the court declare him winner, and to stop the party from conducting another (the rescheduled) primary election. Under section 84(15) of the Electoral Act 2022, no court in Nigeria now has the jurisdiction or competence to stop the holding of primary or general elections pending the determination of any suit. And so the rescheduled election of which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and all party faithfuls were duly notified took place successfully on 4 and 5 May 2022, and Distinguished Senator Joseph Obinna Ogba (Senator Ogba) emerged the winner, having scored the highest number of valid votes cast (beating about eight other candidates) and was returned elected.

THE LEGAL TUSSLE
Having won the primary election conducted by the party, Senator Ogba settled down to deal with the court action then pending at the Federal High Court (FHC) Abakaliki. His pending application for joinder was ignored as the court went ahead to cancel the primary election of 5 June 2022, and declared Chief Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odi (Chief Odi) the authentic candidate having 'won' in the cancelled primary of 29 May 2022. Senator Ogba approached the Court of Appeal (CA) with a notice of appeal (as an interested party) and a concomitant application for joinder. Due to public holidays and intervening weekends, this legal processes were not consummated within the statutory 14 days. At hearing, the CA berated the lower court for giving it's judgement without first disposing of a pending application for joinder; it went ahead to grant the application for joinder, upturned the judgement of the FHC and ordered a retrial by another FHC. Chief Odi appealed to the Supreme Court (SC) followed by a cross Appeal by Senator Ogba. Last Wednesday, 14 September, the ...
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