Obiora Nwabunike, judge of an Anambra state high court, has declared Ugochukwu Uba as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the November 6 governorship election.

This is coming a few hours after Hyeladzira Nganjiwa, judge of a federal high court judge in Awka, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to publish the name of Valentine Ozigbo as candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the same election.

INEC had excluded the PDP from the list of cleared candidates, which was released on July 16.

The electoral body said its decision not to list the name of any PDP candidate was in recognition of court orders served in relation to the primary election of the party.

Ozigbo and Uba had emerged as the PDP’s governorship candidates from parallel primary elections.

Ozigbo subsequently filed an ex parte application on July 14, asking the court to recognise him as the authentic governorship candidate of the party.

The presiding judge refused to grant Ozigbo’s prayer, but instead issued an order of accelerated hearing of the suit.

On the other hand, Uba had approached the court in suit number A/230/2021 to determine if the primary election conducted by the national executive of the PDP at the Dora Akunyili Women’s Development Centre on June 26 was done according to the law.

He asked the court to determine whether an Abuja high court order, on a suit by one Samuel Anyakorah against PDP, bordering on validity of the process that produced Ndubuisi Nwobu, the party’s factional state chairman, had been set aside or stayed.

He also prayed the court to determine if the process of the primary, which produced Ozigbo through ‘super delegates’, was in line with the provisions of the electoral act, which states that primary elections would be done through delegates’ congress.

In his ruling, Nwabunike said the court order, which restrained PDP from conducting the primary election, had neither been stayed nor set aside.

He said that PDP erred by not clearing every legal huddle before the primary election, hence the process was in defiance of the law.

The court, therefore, resolved that the primary, which produced Uba at the Paul University’s complex on June 26 was lawful and in accordance with the electoral guidelines.

The judge also awarded N10 million in Uba’s favour as cost of litigation.

The Jude Okeke-led leadership of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has dismissed the ruling by the Awka High Court, which affirmed former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Charles Soludo, as the candidate of the party in the November 6 Anambra state governorship election.

Addressing a press conference in Abuja, on Monday, the National Publicity Secretary of the faction, Ikechukwu Chukwunyere, averred that the ruling earlier given by High Court in Jigawa State remained in force.

He argued that apart from a higher one, a court cannot vacate the decision by another court with the same jurisdiction.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had last Friday published names of candidates in the election with Chukwuma Umeoji listed for APGA.

The party spokesman stated: “We have invited you here today to brief you on the happenings in our Party and the desperation of some anti-democratic forces to desecrate the judiciary and jettison the rule of law principle which is fundamental in a democracy.

“On Friday, July 16, 2021, the Independent National Electoral Commission published the list of candidates for the Anambra State Governorship election in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act and INEC Guidelines for the election.

“In compliance with the judgment of two competent High Courts, INEC published the name of Hon. Chukwuma Umeoji, a member of the Federal House of Representatives, as the valid and duly nominated candidate of our great party. All institutions of state must obey the judgment of Courts. That is the position of the law.

“A case that was filed by the Oye Camp without notifying the Jude Okeke group, we heard of it on Friday, quickly mobilised our lawyers to apply to join the case but the judge refused because allowing the joinder would mean taking an adjournment for consequential amendment of the processes to reflect the new names joined.

“The judge dismissed the Motion even when no lawyer in the case filed anything in opposition.

“Having failed to deliver the judgment on Friday, the judge this morning in a Court surrounded by over a hundred and fifty policemen and soldiers and wherein every person who was not a lawyer was chased out of the court, delivered a judgment and predictably granted all the prayers of the applicants and even more.

“We must state that the said Victor Oye is not the Chairman of APGA but the Chairman of Forum Shopping in our Courts. He has authorised the filing of several cases in different courts seeking to just see what he would get to validate his illegality.”

Chukwunyere alleged that the party chieftain authoriSed cases to be filed by all his executive members with a promise of monetary reward for anyone that could get a favourable judgment.

“The judgment from Awka cannot vacate the judgment from Jigawa. They are courts of coordinate jurisdiction. They cannot change the position of INEC with it. Hopefully, this matter will be sorted out soon and peace will return to APGA,” he stated.

garfield1:


Unfortunately for apga,the primaries is not being challenged but the processes leading to it thereby any apga member has locus

PeaceJoyLove:
Ibo is her own enemy. What a pity. It should not even be something ibos contest that Soludo should come first even before Orki Uzo Kalu and Okorocha. Ibo is her own enemy.

No matter how you hate Lagos and Jagaban, he uses brains. This Soludo will be used by Jagaban if he was a Lagosian...and even Osinabjo would work well with him too. If not for party issue, I'm sure Buhari people wouldn't mind working with him. Soludo is who Apga is taking to court. It shouldn't be so. They should even find an automatic ticket for him. Mehn!

jazinogold:
Link to watch

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday explained that the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) may not be allowed to participate in the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State due to the party’s non-compliance to Section 85 of the Electoral Act.

The commission has also urged any political party that is not satisfied with its position to go to court.

INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of Publicity and Voters’ Education, Mr. Festus Okoye told THISDAY that APGA had earlier informed the commission of its election to hold ad-hoc delegate congress on June 23, only to later write the commission to declare that the delegates’ election had been conducted.

According to Okoye, “On the 16th of June 2021 the party forwarded to the commission the list of delegates for its congress for the purpose of nominating its candidate for the said election.

“On the 18th June 2021, the Secretary to the Commission responded to the said letter and notified the party that it did not notify the commission of the date of the congress where the ad-hoc delegates were elected as required by Section 85 of the Electoral Act”

Okoye further explained, “ By Section 85 of the Electoral Act 2010(as amended), every registered political party is legally obligated to give the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 21 days’ statutory notice of its intention to organise any convention, congress, conference or meeting for the purpose of nominating candidates for any of the elective offices specified in the Electoral Act.

“In the statutory notice given to the Commission, the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) proposed June 23, 2021 for the conduct of its State Congress for the purposes of nominating its candidate for the Anambra State Governorship Election holding on the 6th of November 2021”, Okoye explained.

The INEC national commissioner said, “Based on its satisfaction of the 21-day statutory requirement for the holding of its congress, the Commission has concluded arrangements to monitor the said congress and will monitor the congress-taking place on the June 23, 2021.”

Okoye said that prior to the letter of the June 18, 2021, the Commission on the June 3, 2021 drew the attention of all the political parties of the imperative of complying with all constitutional and legal requirements for the conduct of party primaries as the commission is obligated to keep records of the activities of all registered political parties.

He stated that “political parties must remain within the confines of the law and legality in the conduct of their primaries and avoid issues and challenges that may complicate the due conduct of elections.

“However, aspirants, candidates and parties that are aggrieved by the actions, decisions or activities of the Commission, or who complain that any of the provisions of the Electoral Act or any Act of the National Assembly regulating the conduct of primaries of political parties and the provisions of the guidelines of a political party for the conduct of party primaries has not been complied with can approach the courts for redress.

“Political parties must conduct due diligence on the list and personal particulars of their candidates and ensure that party members remain the sole determinants of those that are nominated. Violating the law and the guidelines for the conduct of party primaries will only set the stage for acrimonious primaries and avoidable judicial intervention,” he said.

COVID-19: Serving NYSC medical doctor tests positive in Ondo

The third positive case of COVID-19 has been confirmed in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

A statement by the information and Orientation commissioner Donald Ojogo in Akure said the patient is a Medical doctor.

Ojogo said in the statement that “the third positive case in Ondo State is a Medical Doctor; he is a Youth Corp member attached to the Army Clinic at the Barracks and had attended to the first index case while he was under observation.

The commissioner said that “Mr. Governor will tomorrow at noon, address the people of the State on further details in respect of this case and provide deeper insights.

Recall that the other two patients are presently on admission at the infectious disease centre along Igbatoro road.”

Oyo State Government has increased the monthly allowance of NYSC members serving in the state from the sum of four thousand to five thousand Naira, added as their accommodation allowance.

This was made known during an induction programme organized for the 2019 BATCH ” B” STREAMS 1&11 Corps members posted to the state civil service, which was held at the House of Chiefs, Oyo State Secretariat, Ibadan.

Delivering his welcome address, the Honourable Commissioner for Youth & Sports, Honourable Seun Fakorede @theseunfakorede assured Corp members that Oyo state is a peaceful and harmonious region, stressing that all Corp members will be given equal opportunity to strive and triumph irrespective of their social, tribal or religious affiliations.

He therefore implored Corp members to make effective use of their service year by working diligently, urging them to make good use of the civil service rules, regulations and ethics, stressing that the reward may not be immediate but someday it will come in handy.