Appeal Court Refuses Omo-Agege’s Joinder Application

By Sylvester Idowu in Warri

The Court of Appeal, sitting in Benin, Edo State yesterday dismissed an application for joinder filed by Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, representing Delta Central senatorial district for the Delta APC annulment judgment for lack of merit.

The Appeal Court also struck out application for joinder by the lawmaker-elect for Ughelli North, South and Udu Federal Constituency, Rev. Francis Ejiroghene Waive.

The appellants had approached the court for leave of the court to be joined as parties to the suit in which the Federal High Court, sitting in Asaba sacked the Jones Erue-led APC state executive committee which conducted primaries where both of them emerged as candidates of the party for the 2019 National Assembly election.

The learned Justices, in a unanimously decision, ruled that both applications filed by Omo-Agege and Waive lacked merit and subsequently dismissed the case with a fine of N300, 000 against the appellants (Omo-Agege and Waive).

The Appeal Court gave reason for refusal of the applications saying the plaintiffs cannot claimed to be unaware of the case hence they cannot seek to be joined or challenged the judgement, at this moment.

It was learnt that only Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee (NWC) that are parties to the case can bring an application to appeal the Asaba Federal High Court annulment judgment.

Omo-Agege and Waive had through their counsel, Mr. Alex Iziyon, SAN, while seeking the leave of the court to appeal the judgement, filed an exparte motion which was granted to enable them serve Chief Cyril Ogodo by pasting service at the state party secretariat in Asaba.

It could be also recalled that the Federal High Court 1, Asaba, in its March 18, 2019, judgement delivered by Justice Toyin Adegoke sacked the Prophet Jones Erue-led factional State Executive Committee, instead upholding the Chief Cyril Ogodo faction as the authentic party’s State Executive Committee.

The court also in its judgement annulled all action taken by the sacked Jones Erue-led executive committee, including party primaries and the list of candidates which emerged from their factional primaries declaring it null and void.

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