■ Restores Chris Uba, John Emeka as Senators
FROM: GODWIN TSA, ABUJA
THE Supreme Court in a unanimous judgment at the weekend swept away Senators Andy Uba and Stella Oduah from the upper legislative chambers including nine other members of the House of Representatives from Anambra State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic [PDP].
Uba was a former Special Assistant to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo on Domestic Affairs, while Stella Oduah was a former Minister of Aviation. Other affected lawmakers include; Anayo Nnebe, Obinna Chidoka, Lynda Ikpeazu, Emeka Anohu, Eucharia Azodo, Chris Azubogu and three others who are all members of the House of Representatives.
This was after the apex court reaffirmed the Chief Ejike Oguebego led executive of the party in the state as the authentic one to be accorded recognition by the Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC].
Going by the judgment, the list of nominated party candidates in the last election from the Oguebego-led executive was the only one to be recognised by the INEC.
Consequently, Chris Uba, John Emeka and Annie Okonkwo are the duly nominated senatorial candidates for Anambra South, Central and North respectively in the March 28, 2015 general election.
The appellants had approached the Supreme Court to determine who were the legal and validly nominated candidates of the party to stand for the April 2015 general elections for the PDP in the state.
Oguebego had in his motion on notice pursuant to Section 17 of the Court of Appeal Act 2004 and Order 4 Rule 6 of Court of Appeal Rules 2011 sought an order for stay of execution of the Court of Appeal verdict of February 6, 2015 in suit ref CA/A/737/201, PDP vs Oguebego and 3 others, pending final determination of appeal brought by himself and Okoye at the Supreme Court.
They further prayed for an order of injunction restraining the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission or any of their agents from implementing the Court of Appeal verdict of Feb 6,2015, pending the determination of the appeal before the Supreme Court, and or any other order the court may deem necessary.
They also applied for an order for accelerated hearing of the appeal in order not to render the outcome a mere academic exercise.
The Federal High Court had ruled that it lacks jurisdiction to dabble into the issue of which of the two factions was the authentic state executive committee of the party to field candidates for the election.
After the Court of Appeal upheld the ruling of the Federal High Court, the Oguebego faction headed to the apex court to determine whether in the light of the PDP constitution, the Ken Emeakayi faction was qualified to hold primary election to select candidates for the 2015 election.
The matter gained national attention after the Court of Appeal, Enugu Division on December 7, 2015 sacked the senator representing Anambra Central Senatorial district, Senator Uche Ekwunife, on the grounds that she did not emerge from the Oguebego faction.
Ruling on the appeal filed by the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Mr. Victor Umeh, against the judgment of the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal, the Appeal Court declared that “the 11th respondent, who had denied taking part in the Ejike Oguebego-led factional State Executive of PDP, could therefore not have been properly nominated, since that was the faction that had the primaries monitored by INEC.”
Consequently, the court declared that “the 11th respondent (Ekwunife) was therefore not the product of a valid primary and was therefore not duly and legitimately nominated. That has disqualified her from contesting the election into the Anambra Central Senatorial district.”
The court ordered the Independent national Electoral Commission (INEC), to conduct a rerun election for the senatorial district within 90 days, pointing out that having decided on the qualification of Ekwunife, it did not have to look into the other aspects of the disputed election.
In a brief reaction through a statement by Collins Steve Ugwu, Sen Okonkwo, described the verdict as a bold moral relief for Anambra Central constituents. It is a purifier to the agonising muddy impunity and decadent imposition that the good people of my constituency were made to endure while the insanity lasted.
Recall that the crisis ridden PDP primaries in Anambra State then were fraught with factions especially Anambra Central, where the victorious appellant hold forte.
The verdict that is already causing ripples in the state is expected to alter the status of other incumbent senators from the state who all emerged from PDP but not the recognised primary.