The special court of Appeal Panel set up to adjudicate on the political cases in River State, has reserved judgment in consolidated appeals contesting the judgment of Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The three-man panel of justices led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi announced that judgment in the appeals will be reserved after counsel to parties in the appeals adopted their briefs.
In one of the appeals bordering on the Rivers local government election, Justice Lifu in the judgment, barred the Independent National Electoral Commission from releasing the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission for the conduct of the state local government polls which has now been conducted.
An election which was held on October 5, 2024.
Justice Lifu while delivering judgment in the suit, criticised RSIEC for setting October 5 as the election date without adhering to the relevant laws governing the conduct of the election.
He ruled that the Rivers State electoral body violated the provisions of the local government election law by failing to publish the mandatory 90-day notice before fixing the election date.
The judge further held that the updating and revision of the voters’ register should have been completed before a legally valid election date could be set, he then ordered INEC not to release the certified voters’ register to RSIEC until all legal requirements had been met. The decision of the lower court resulted in the filing of multiple appeals and cross appeals before the appellate court challenging the judgment.
In another suit, presided over by Justice Lifu, brought before the court by some members of the Rivers State chapter of the PDP, Justice Lifu while delivering ruling in an experte application, restrained the national leadership of the PDP from dissolving the newly elected executives of the party in Rivers State.
Specifically, he restrained the PDP Governors Forum, National Working Committee and the Board of Trustees of the party from tampering with or dissolving the executive of the PDP from the wards up to the state chapter of the party in Rivers State.
The judge also ordered that the defendants must not in anyway allow or permit any other group or persons to perform the duties and functions of the PDP state, local governments and ward officers elected between July 27 and August 31, 2024.
In an ex-parte motion the plaintiffs alleged that the defendants were making clandestine moves to dissolve the legally constituted state, local governments and ward executive committees of PDP in Rivers State.
At the teamed hearing, the consolidated appeals that arose from Justice Lifu’s judgment included appeals between the Social Democratic Party against the APC and three others; another between Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission and APC and four others and one other between Attorney General of Rivers State against APC.
Meanwhile, the panel adjourned some of the appeals to January 23, 2025 for hearing.
They are the ones between the Accountant General of Rivers State and the Rivers State House of Assembly, one between Action Peoples Party and INEC and 28 others, another between Alhaji Bala Mohammed and Aaron Chukwuemeka, and another between Peter Ohochukwu against APC, RSIEC and others.
When the matter was called up, two lawyers, Misters B. F. Folurunsho and Mr. J. Y. Musa, separately announced their appearances for the PDP.
While Musa, told the appellate court that he was mandated by the party to withdraw the appeal, Folurunsho told the court that no such directive came from the party.
Following the controversy, the three-man special panel, led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi, acknowledged that it got a letter from the PDP, signed by its Acting National Chairman and Secretary indicating that it did not authorize the appeal and wants to discontinue the case.
Due to the development, the appellate court panel ordered the two lawyers to go back to the PDP and sort out the issue of representation.
The counsel that represented the Rivers State Government, Goddy Uche, SAN, told the court that aside from the 11 cases, four more appeals bordering on the crisis in the state, had also been filed, he however prayed for an adjournment to enable the matters to be consolidated.
The court granted the prayer and fixed November 22 as return date for another round of the appeals.
Editor Paul Akhagbemhe
