Alex Enumah in Abuja
But for the presence of counsel to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Kalu Agu, in court last Thursday the scheduled presidential primary of the party would have been scuttled following an application for the suspension of the primary by a presidential aspirant.
The aspirant, a former Deputy Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Mr. Cosmas Ndukwe, while challenging the party’s decision against zoning, had also asked the Federal High Court, Abuja, for an order of injunction restraining the party from going ahead with the primary pending the hearing and determination of his main suit.
Recall that the PDP had fixed May 28 for the conduct of its presidential primary election.
The party on Thursday also closed its sale of expression of interest and nomination forms, after which 17 aspirants were listed for screening on April 29.
The 17 aspirants who obtained the PDP’s presidential form which was sold for N40 million cuts across the geopolitical zones in the country, a situation which the plaintiff said ought not to be.
In the case marked FHC/ABJ/CS/508/2022, and filed by his lawyer, Mr. Paul Erokoro (SAN), the applicant is challenging the scheduled presidential primary on the grounds that it breached its own constitution on zoning.
According to Ndukwe, the PDP has a rotation of elective offices in place and that it ought to be the turn of the South to produce the president.
At Thursday’s proceedings before Justice Donatus Okorowo, while Erokoro announced appearance for the applicant, Agu announced appearance for the PDP.
Although the business of the day was meant for the mentioning of the suit, but Erokoro, informed the court of an ex parte application he brought to court and sought the court’s permission to move it.
Agu however, quickly drew the judge’s attention to the Cause List of the court wherein the business of the day in respect of this matter was for mention.
But the judge told Erokoro to proceed to move his motion, wherein the senior lawyer urged the court to restrain the PDP, its National Chairman, Dr. Iyochia Ayu and Senator Samuel Anyanwu from going on with the activities for the Presidential Primary of the PDP pending the hearing of the substantive matter.
He submitted that the restraining order is necessary because the PDP is in breach of its constitution on the policy of rotation of the presidential ticket to the South.
Reacting, PDP’s lawyer however, addressed the court on the inappropriateness of the application by the Learned Silk having served the Peoples Democratic Party the Originating Processes and should not come before the court with an ex parte application excluding the Peoples Democratic Party from being heard in a serious political matter that has very grave implications on its preparations for the 2023 General Elections.
In a short ruling Justice Okorowo ordered the PDP to come to the court on May 5, 2022, to show cause why the injunctive reliefs in the Plaintiff’s ex parte motion would not be granted against the PDP.
