By Eric Ikhilae, Abuja and Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

The Supreme Court has upheld the nomination of Chukwuma Odii Ifeanyi as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State for next year’s election.

A five-member panel, headed by Justice Amina Augie, unanimously upheld the appeal filed by Ifeanyi.

The court set aside the July 19 judgment of the Court of Appeal, which ordered a retrial of the suit between Ifeanyi and Senator Joseph Obinna Ogba on the dispute over who was the authentic candidate.

The apex court restored the judgment of the Federal High Court delivered on June 7, 2022, which the Court of Appeal had set aside on July 19.

The court held that the Court of Appeal was without jurisdiction to have heard the appeal filed by Ogba, because the notice of appeal filed by Ogba on June 17, 2022, was incompetent on the basis that he failed to first obtain the leave of court to appeal as an interested party.

The apex court further held that the incompetence of Ogba’s notice of appeal robbed the Court of Appeal of the requisite jurisdiction, and as such, all the proceedings conducted amounted to a nullity, including the order made in the July 19 judgment setting aside the June 7 judgment of the Federal High Court, which had upheld Ifeanyi’s nomination.

The judgment was on the appeal marked: DC/CV/ 939/2022 filed by Ifeanyi.

Justice Mohammed Garba, who read the lead judgment, held that it was mandatory for an interested party, who was not a party on record, to first seek and obtain the leave of the Court of Appeal before appealing a judgment as an interested party.

Justice Garba said: “The failure or omission of the first respondent to first seek and obtain prior leave of court tenders the appeal incompetent.

“The notice of appeal filed on the 17th of June 2022, having been filed without leave, is therefore incompetent.

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“In the absence of a valid notice of appeal before the court below, the first respondent lacked locus standi to have appealed the decision of the trial court.

“As a result, I find merit in this appeal. All the proceedings conducted by the lower court were conducted without jurisdiction and hence a nullity,” he said.

He added that since the proceedings have been declared null and void, there was no need for the court to dwell on the propriety of the proceedings.

Justice proceeded to set aside the July 19 judgment and restored the June 7 judgment of the Federal High Court that affirmed Ifeanyi’s nomination.

Justice Garba also struck out the cross-appeal filed by Ogba for lacking in merit.

Other members of the panel are Justice Adamu Jauro, Emmanuel Agim and Tijani Abubakar.

Ebonyi PDP seeks unity

The Ebonyi Chapter of the party PDP called for unity.

Its spokesperson, Chika Nwoba, in a statement, urged party members, supporters and the general public to see the victory as the first step in the journey towards restoring Ebonyi to the path of good governance that the party had always given since 1999.

“We charge both Mr Ifeanyi Odii and Sen. Obinna Ogba to see this finality as a journey that has just begun in view of the determination of the party to reclaim its place in the leadership register of Ebonyi State as there exists no victor nor vanquish in this case.

“We plead with members and supporters to cease making comments that may have the potential to divide the party and present anyone as a loser.

“PDP is one in Ebonyi State and we need a more united force to pursue the task of winning the 2023 gubernatorial election in Ebonyi State.”

Odii hails verdict

Odii, in a statement, dedicated the victory to the people of the state for keeping faith with him throughout the litigation.

He said: “ Our victory at the Supreme Court is dedicated to God Almighty and you the good people of Ebonyi State.

“Your steadfast belief and support for our collective aspiration for a better Ebonyi State, has yet again, received God’s blessings.

“Like achieving anything of enduring value, the process can be tough but not beyond our resilience to overcome.

“Today, we are one step closer to our goal of making life better for you, our people. By the grace of Almighty God, we shall succeed.”