Politics
THE Hon. Justice Usman Liman of the Federal High Court No.2, Umuahia Division, Abia State, on Thursday, 29th day of December, 2022, delivered judgment in favour of Ifeanyi Elvis Ogbonna and against Okorafor Ike Okorafor, in Suit No. FHC/UM/CS/152/2022 – Mr. IFEANYI ELVIS OGBONNA V. APGA,OKORAFOR & INEC. In the said suit filed on Ogbonna’s behalf by Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN,CON, who led Mr Clement Onwuenwunor, SAN, the court nullified APGA’s purported primary election conducted on 24th May, 2022, at Ozuabam Central School, instead of the designated APGA Party Secretariat in Arochukwu, Abia State, for the Arochukwu Constituency in the 2023 General Election for Abia State House of Assembly.
The suit which was originally filed at the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, as Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1118/2022, was later transferred to the Umuahia Division of the Federal High Court for final adjudication and judgement by the Hon Justice J.T Tsoho, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, on grounds of territorial jurisdiction. The judgement which finally came on Thursday, 29th December, 2022, marked the end of a long drawn tortuous legal battle, including a Notice of Preliminary Objection filed by Okorafor Ike Okorafor, one of the Defendants.
The trial Judge, Hon Justice Liman, agreed with the arguments of Ozekhome and Onwuenwunor, the Plaintiff’s lawyers and granted the plaintiff’s claims,to the effect that the APGA’S primary election conducted at Ozuabam Central School was dubious,overreaching and undemocratic, especially as same was held at a venue different from the APGA Party Secretariat venue at Arochukwu, Abia State, which was the official venue designated by INEC and the Electoral laws, for the conduct of the said Primary Election.The voided election had seen the purported emergence of Mr. Okorafor Ike Okorafor, as the party’s candidate,as against Ifeanyi Ogbonna who had emerged victorious from the election validly and properly conducted at the officially designated venue.
The trial Judge in nullifying the election ordered that a fresh primary election be conducted within 14 days at a venue to be disclosed to the contestants, to elect the appropriate candidate to represent APGA in the 2023 General Elections for Arochukwu constituency in the Abia State House of Assembly, Abia State.
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Tags: Ifeanyi Elvis Ogbonna Justice Usman Liman Okorafor Ike Okorafor
