The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), governors, the National Working Committee (NWC), and the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party are prohibited by an Abuja Federal High Court from interfering with or dissolving the party’s Executive Committee in Rivers State.
According to reports, Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has faithful supporters among the members of the Rivers PDP EXCO. Wike and Sim Fubara, the governor of Rivers State, are fighting for supremacy.
The court also barred the PDP governors, the party’s NWC, and the BoT from forming any temporary committees to take the place of the party’s officers in Rivers State’s wards, local governments, and state legislatures.
The order was given by Justice Peter Lifu in response to an ex-parte plea that the PDP Rivers State Executive Committee, led by Aaron Chukwuemeka and his ward and local government equivalents, had placed before him.
Judge Lifu also issued an injunction to the PDP national body and others not to interfere with or dissolve the PDP’s local government and ward leaderships in Rivers State, which were chosen at the party’s most recent congress along with the State Executive Committee.
The court ruled in an enrolled order that our reporter was able to get that the defendants could not, under any circumstances, shorten the terms of the Rivers PDP executive committees at the state, local, and ward levels.
In addition, the judge mandated that the defendants refrain from allowing any other group or individuals to assume the responsibilities and powers of the PDP state, municipal, and ward offices that would be elected between July 37 and August 31, 2024.
Aaron Chukwuemeka, Oye Fubara Igenewari, and ThankGod Bekee are the plaintiffs in the ex-parte application with the file number FHC/ABJ/CS/1396/2024. They filed the lawsuit on behalf of the state, local government, and ward executive committees.
Defendants number from 1 to 9 and include PDP, Umar Damagun, Samuel Anyanwu, Umar Bature, NWC, NEC, BOT, INEC, and Alhaji Bala Mohammed of the PDP Governors’ Forum.
The plaintiffs had claimed that the defendants were secretly dissolving the legally established state, local government, and ward executive committees of the PDP in Rivers State in their ex-parte application, which was argued on their behalf by Dr. Joshua Musa, SAN.
They further claimed that the defendants, which included the PDP governors, were trying to install temporary committees in their stead to carry out the responsibilities and tasks of the party’s ward executive committees, state government, and local government in Rivers State.
The plaintiffs claimed that they would be forced to endure injustice and losses if the defendants were not stopped from committing the illegal behavior.
In his ruling, Justice Lifu after perusing the exhibits tendered by the plaintiffs restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from accepting or recognizing any other person or groups other than those elected at the state, local government and wards elections of the PDP in Rivers State.
In the interim, the judge has mandated that the plaintiffs submit a new undertaking promising to indemnify each and every defendant in the event that it turns out that the restraining orders against the defendants were improperly granted.
October 4, 2024 has been set aside for the hearing of the move on notice filed by the plaintiffs against the nine defendants.
