2023: Court Dismisses Suit against A’Ibom PDP Congress

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Justice Obiora Egwuata of the Federal High Court, Abuja yesterday dismissed a suit challenging the validity of the April 30, 2022 People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Ward Congress in Akwa Ibom State.

Justice Egwuatu dismissed the suit on the grounds that the court lacked the requisite jurisdiction because the plaintifffs who initiated the court action lacked necessary legal backing to do so.

According to the judgment, the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/606/2022 brought by Friday Iwok and 30 others was incompetent, devoid of merit and liable to be struck out.

Defendants are; the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the PDP and the elected ad-hoc delegates who emerged from the ward congresses conducted as 1st to 331st defendants respectively.

Plaintiffs specifically sought an order nullifying the said convention as well as the outcome of the April 30 ward congress that produced the ad-hoc delegates who voted in the primaries. 

However, Justice Egwuatu in his judgment held that the suit lacked merit because the plaintiffs, having not participated in the delegates’ election of the party in the state, lacked the locus standi to institute the suit.

According to him, for a party to have a locus standi, he must have participated in the election to which he is contending the outcome.

On the submission of the plaintiffs that the action of the PDP contravened the issue of fair hearing, the judge said that the plaintiffs did not show how their constitutional rights were denied by the party.

Egwuatu said that even though the plaintiffs averred that they purchased the expression of interest and nomination forms to contest in the ward congresses that produced the delegates, he held that the public notice of the party for the election was clear and unbais.

“The notice informed the public that all card-carrying members of the PDP are expected to take part in the elections, expecially those aspiring to be elected as ad-hoc delegates.

“This notice did not exclude any member,” he said.

He said the plaintiffs did not show that the PDP used any criteria to either screen or disqualify any one.

“He who asserts must prove,” he added, quoting sections of the Evidence Act to back his decision.

He further held that the court had no power to entertain the suit being an issue pertaining to the internal affairs of the party.

The court also agreed that the plaintiffs did not exhaust the party’s internal mechanism to resolve the issue before filing the matter.

The judge consequently dismissed the suit for lacking in merit.

“I am inclined to agreed with counsel to the 2nd defendant (PDP). This suit lacks merit on the whole and accordingly dismissed,” he declared.

Reacting to the judgement, Counsel to the 2nd defendant, Emmanuel Enoidem said, the judgement will serve as a benchmark for litigants who will want to go to court on any of the contentious issues of the 2022 Electoral Act as amended.

“The Electoral Act 2022 is a new legal instrument and many courts of law had the opportunity to consider the provisions especially the novel ones but this is the first time a court has sat to give a comprehensive decision both in ruling and judgment concerning some salient provisions of the Electoral Act”.

“The judgement will serve as a benchmark for a lot of litigants who will want to go to court on issues concerning the 2022 Electoral Act particularly, Section 84 (3) that a lot of people are brandishing out of context. This court has taken time to situate it within the parameter that section was intended to serve”, he declared. 

One of the main beneficiaries of the court ruling, Pastor Umo Eno, the PDP governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State described the judgement as “God in action”, adding that “this is what the handwriting of God looks like…truth will always prevail over falsehood and misrepresentations, no matter how long it takes”.