Supreme Court Urged to Resolve Pending Imo Guber Suits Before November 11 Poll
Alex Enumah in Abuja
The Supreme Court has been urged to resolve all pending cases on the 2019 Imo State governorship election before the November 11, 2023, gubernatorial poll.
The call was made over the weekend in Abuja, by a civil group, the Association for Public Policy Analysis.
Few months after its January 14, 2020, judgment sacking Emeka Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as Governor of Imo State, the PDP as well as the All People’s Party (APP) had brought two separate motions asking the apex court to enforce its judgment which had nullified the candidacy of Uche Nwosu of the Action Alliance (AA) for been nominated by two parties.
Besides the PDP and APP, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), which had applied to be joined as an interested party in the suit, had also brought a motion praying the court to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh election within 90 days, on the grounds that two separate judgments of the apex court in the Imo guber had indicated that the state does not have a lawful governor.
However, after three years the applications/motions were filed, the apex court on October 16, wrote parties in the suit informing them that the matter has been slated for October 31, 2023.
In its own motion, the PDP claimed that since the apex court in its judgment in the appeal filed by Nwosu against APP, Uche Nnadi, PDP and INEC, held that Nwosu’s participation in the poll was voided and was lawfully nominated by APC as its candidate in the 2019 guber; then the court should hold that the APC had no lawful candidate in the election and should accordingly declare its candidate as Governor of Imo State.
After sacking Ihedioha for not winning the highest number of lawful votes cast at the poll, the apex court subsequently declared Hope Uzodinma of the APC, authentic winner of the Imo guber.
Dissatisfied with how Uzodinma became the APC gubernatorial candidate, a motion on notice was filed in 2019 by the PDP and the APP, praying the apex court to interpret the effect of the judgment that held Nwosu as APC’s candidate but disqualified him for having double nomination of APC and AA at the same time.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Philip Umeadi, had filed another motion on notice to the Supreme Court for the interpretation of the judgment that sacked Nwosu and sought enforcement of the same judgment as it relates to APC’s participation in the 2019 Imo governorship election.
Addressing a press conference in Abuja on the two pending motions on notice, the group pleaded with the apex court to determine the two cases before another election is conducted.
The National President of the association, Princewill Okorie, praised the court for fixing October 31, for the two suits, but raised an alarm over alleged plans to shift the date.
“It is on record that there were two Supreme Court judgments of December 20, 2019 (SC/1384/ 2019) and January 14, 2020 (SC/462/2019).
“The two judgments raised fundamental issues affecting politics in Imo State and yet to be resolved by the Supreme Court in the past three years,” he said.
He pleaded with the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, to jettison any pressure from any quarters that would truncate the hearing of the pending matters or delay their expeditious disposal before the November 11, governorship election in Imo State.
Okorie said considering that the State had been politically unstable and unsafe since 2020, the association, on October 10, 2023, wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, and appealed to him to see that the motions are heard and rulings given expeditiously before the 2023 governorship election.
“While it is gratifying to note that the Chief Justice of Nigeria granted our plea by fixing October 31, 2023, for hearing of the motions, it is regrettable that information reaching us from our analysts in the judiciary is pointing to the fact that some staff at the Supreme Court have been induced to compromise by making frantic efforts to shift the hearing date which has already been served on parties in the cases to December 2023.
“The question is, why should judiciary staff contemplate shifting the date approved by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, and why will traditional rulers attempt to influence shift in the hearing date of the two motions?
“This is without the notice of the Chief Justice of Nigeria who by his action after receiving our letter approved date for hearing of the motions,” Okorie said.
He alleged that certain public servants in the judiciary, politicians and traditional rulers were trying to delay the hearing and determination of the case for selfish and unpatriotic reasons.
“Putting the 2019 governorship election judicial struggle to rest before the next election will not only restore the confidence of the Imo people in the judiciary but promote justice and fair play as well as give parties involved in the matter the opportunity to move on with their lives.
“Finally, it is important to remind the Chief Justice of Nigeria that shifting the date of the motions that have stayed at the Supreme Court for over three years will present the Supreme Court as the institution that is not consistent with her decisions on policies, circumventing the will of justice, propelling political instability in Imo State and lacking in integrity.
“This image and perception will be very wrong in the eyes of the international community who are relying on Nigeria to champion effort towards sustainability of credible democracy in Africa,” he added.
He asked the Court not to bow to any external pressure, but to strive to hear the two pending motions and deliver rulings in one way or another to settle the political impasse in Imo State permanently.
