The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PDP

  • PDP moves to reconcile aggrieved members

    PDP moves to reconcile aggrieved members

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has initiated moves to reconcile its aggrieved members in the six geopolitical zones across the nation.

    Grievances and discontents arising from the conduct of the party’s last primary elections nationwide had degenerated into divisions leading some aggrieved members to work against the interest of the party.

    Rising from a meeting of the party’s Post Election Assessment Committee Tuesday, the PDP announced the constitution of three teams of three members each, charged with the responsibility of touring the six geopolitical zones.

    The first team, headed by Senator Ahmed Makarfi would be coordinating the South-south and South-east geopolitical zones, while the second team headed by Alhaji Shuabu Oyedokun would be coordinating the Northeast and Northwest geopolitical zones.

    The third team, headed by Mr. Emeka Ihedioha would be coordinating the Southwest and North central zones. The committees have up till July 10 to complete their assignments and submit their reports.

    Addressing journalists shortly after the meeting, Deputy President of the Senate and chairman of the Post Election Assessment Committee, Ike Ekweremadu expressed the optimism that the PDP will come out stronger at the end of the exercise.

    According to him, the committee had so far received over 1000 memoranda from members across the federation.

  • Buhari’s anti-corruption drive unsettles PDP

    Buhari’s anti-corruption drive unsettles PDP

    •Party warns against witch-hunting

    THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appears to be uncomfortable with President Muhammadu Buhari’s decision to recover public funds allegedly stolen by government officials in the last administration.

    Apparently worried by the decision, the PDP has expressed fears that the exercise might become a witch-hunt aimed at discrediting and undermining the opposition.

    A statement yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, cautioned the President against politicising corruption.

    The PDP said: “While we expect the present administration to be serious about the fight against corruption, probe and prosecute those  involved, irrespective of their party leanings, we restate that these must be done within the ambits of the law and must not be used as a witch-hunt ostensibly to discredit and undermine the opposition.

    “We, therefore, caution against the current drama of politicising the issue of corruption in the country.”

    The party said no amount of intimidation, blackmail and propaganda by the Presidency would stop it from standing shoulder to shoulder with Nigerians in demanding that the President kick-start his government and commence implementation of his campaign promises.

    The statement described as “lame and diversionary” claims by the Presidency that the financial mess created by the last PDP led administration was still being cleared.

    Buhari had stated that he met a near empty treasury and huge debts at the time he assumed the Presidency on May 29, a situation which, he said, was one of the reasons for the delay in appointing his ministers.

    But the PDP said the delay was creating loopholes through which some persons claiming closeness to the President have infiltrated executive bodies, arm-twisting and conniving with unscrupulous elements in the bureaucracy to siphon the nation’s resources in the last 30 days.

    The statement added that the PDP would not in any way be cowed by threats and wild allegations by the Presidency into abdicating its responsibility of speaking out as an opposition party where the system is derailing.

    “The PDP and indeed all well-meaning Nigerians were appalled by the response from the Presidency regarding our call for prayers to enable President Buhari-led APC administration locate its bearing, compose a government and halt the prevailing stagnation with its huge negative impact on the system.

    “Instead of addressing the issues raised, the Presidency descended to insults, abuses and innuendos, a stance which not only bears out the case made by the PDP, but also raises questions about the capacity of this administration to shoulder the enormous responsibility of governance.

    “Furthermore, the analogy of the Augean stable is completely baffling to us at this level as it goes to a great length to question the capacity and the sincerity of those around the President.

    “In Greek mythology, Hercules in his ingenuity took the task and efficiently cleared the Augean’ stable in a day for which he demanded a reward of a tenth of fine cattle belonging to the king.

    “Nigerians would not want to believe that in the so-called clearing of the Augean stable, although not delivering in one day; President Buhari wants to play Hercules in his demand, this time, by wanting to run the government alone without the statutory components of the executive as enshrined in the constitution.

    “We ask, is the so-called clearing of mess responsible for his inability after 90 days of winning an election to make up his mind on rudimentary appointments such as Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief of Staff and his demand for 15 special advisers as approved by the PDP controlled Seventh Assembly since June 5, 2015?”

    “Perhaps we need to draw President Buhari’s attention to the fact that while he is busy clearing his imaginary mess on the pages of newspapers, some persons claiming closeness to him have in the last 30 days been piling up sleazes that also need his attention in key agencies of government.

    “Despite the absence of approving and supervising officials, key income generating institutions like Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Authority (NIMASA), Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and other strategic agencies have been invaded by persons claiming to be friends and associates of the President and this puts to question the sincerity and seriousness of the administration to effect the so-called change upon which they rode to power.”

     

  • Delta 2015: APC, others floor PDP in round one

    Delta 2015: APC, others floor PDP in round one

    A In a suit instituted by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to challenge the candidature of Olorogun O’tega Emerhor, the All Progressives congress (APC) governorship candidate in Delta State and other APC candidates in the 2015 general elections in the state, the presiding judge has ruled to dismiss and strike out the case describing the PDP Justice C.M.O. Olatoregun-Isola authorities behind the case as busy bodies.

    Ruling on the matter, Justice Olatoregun-Isola noted that the PDP did not show sufficient evidence to prove that their rights were transgressed by the opposition parties or why the defendants’ candidature should be nullified. According to the judge, it was a matter that should be decided at the Election Petition Tribunal and therefore it was struck out.

    Justice Olatoregun-Isola ruled that the PDP’s case against the governorship candidates of the APC, the Labour Party (LP), and the Accord Party (AP) had insufficient evidence and has to be taken to the Election Petition Tribunal. During the April 11, 2015 governorship election the PDP claimed that all the opposition candidates were not valid to be placed on the ballot.

    The Delta State chapter of the PDP and Governor Ifeanyi Okowa instituted the legal action to challenge the eligibility of all the candidates of the APC, the AP and the LP in the elections. The case originated from the chambers of Mr. Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN) and filed in March 2015 on behalf of the PDP at the Federal High Court sitting in Asaba.

    The list of defendants in the suit include: the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); the APC governorship flagbearer; the Accord Party senatorial candidate for Delta North, Mr. Victor Ochei and 96 others.

  • Buhari’s anti corruption drive unsettles PDP

    Buhari’s anti corruption drive unsettles PDP

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appears to be uncomfortable with the decision of President Muhammadu Buhari to recover public funds allegedly stolen by government officials in the last administration.

    Apparently worried by the decision, the PDP has expressed fears that the exercise might become a witch hunt aimed at discrediting and undermining the opposition.

    In a statement issued on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the party cautioned the President against politicising the issue of corruption in the country.

    The PDP said, “While we expect the present administration to be serious about the fight against corruption, probe and persecute each and everyone involved in such, irrespective of their party leaning, we restate that these must be done within the ambits of the law and must not be used as a witch-hunt ostensibly to discredit and undermine the opposition. We therefore caution against the current drama of politicising the issue of corruption in the country.”

    The party said no amount of intimidation, blackmail and propaganda by the Presidency would stop it from standing shoulder to shoulder with Nigerians in demanding that the President kick-start his government and commence implementation of his campaign promises.

    The statement described as “lame and diversionary” claims by the Presidency that the financial mess created by the last PDP led administration was still being cleared.

    President Buhari had stated that he met a near empty treasury and huge debts at the time he assumed the Presidency on May 29, a situation he  said, was one of the reasons for the delay in appointing his cabinet ministers.

    But the PDP said the delay is creating loopholes through which some persons claiming closeness to the President have infiltrated executive bodies, arm-twisting and conniving with unscrupulous elements in the bureaucracy to siphon the nation’s resources in the last 30 days.

    The statement added that the PDP would not in any way be cowed by threats and wild allegations by the Presidency into abdicating its responsibility of speaking out as an opposition party where the system is derailing.

    “The PDP and indeed all well-meaning Nigerians were appalled by the response from the Presidency regarding our call for prayers to enable President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC administration locate its bearing, compose a government and halt the prevailing stagnation with its huge negative impact on the system.

    “Instead of addressing the issues raised, the Presidency descended to insults, abuses and innuendos, a stance which not only bears out the case made by the PDP but also raises questions about the capacity of this administration to shoulder the enormous responsibility of governance.

    “Furthermore, the analogy of the Augean stable is completely baffling to us at this level as it goes to a great length to question the capacity and the sincerity of those around the President.

    “In Greek mythology, Hercules in his ingenuity took the task and efficiently cleared the Augean’ stable in a day for which he demanded a reward of a tenth of fine cattle belonging to the king.

    “Nigerians would not want to believe that in the so-called clearing of the Augean stable, although not delivering in one day, President Buhari wants to play Hercules in his demand, this time, by wanting to run the government alone without the statutory components of the executive as enshrined in the constitution.

    “We ask, is the so-called clearing of mess responsible for his inability after 90 days of winning an election to make up his mind on rudimentary appointments such as Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief of Staff and his demand for 15 Special Advisers as approved by the PDP controlled Seventh Assembly since June 5, 2015?

    “Perhaps we need to draw President Buhari’s attention to the fact that while he is busy clearing his imaginary mess on the pages of newspapers, some persons claiming closeness to him have in the last 30 days been piling up sleazes that also need his attention in key agencies of government.”

     

  • Don’t push Buhari into your traps, Sani tells PDP

    Don’t push Buhari into your traps, Sani tells PDP

    ‎Following the criticism from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over President Muhammadu Buhari’s pace on appointments, Senator representing Kaduna Central, Comrade Shehu Sani has alleged that the PDP was only attempting to rush Buhari into the traps and land mines left behind by its government.‎

    ‎Senator Sani said, the PDP government had destroyed Nigeria and its economy, as well as it has paralysed Nigerian people and impoverished them in the last 16 years of its ruling the country.

    Sani stated this while addressing newsmen shortly after his visit to the National Library in Kaduna on Monday.

    According to the Senator, “President Muhammadu Buhari’s pace is not deliberate, but a calculated and deliberate act to ensure that the steps he take are in the best interest of Nigeria and in the best interest of our people.

    “The Jonathan administration had laid a lot of land mines, snares and traps. You can’t rush President Muhammadu Buhari into such land mines, snares and traps. His critics want him to fall into such traps.

    “Those who are criticising Mr. President are the agents of the past. Despite the challenges of APC, Nigeria cannot go back to the PDP. PDP represent evil and we are paying the price of allowing the PDP to rule Nigeria for 16 years.

    ‎”It is only people that shameless that will be critical of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari, after piling such enormous debt for our country, after looting the treasury of our country, after allowing blood to flow in all parts of Nigeria and now, you are talking about government being slow, I think they are very unfair.

    “We as a party will definitely overcome our differences and wax stronger and no matter what it is, Nigerians will not go ‎back to the past, because the past represents darkness and darkness is represented by the PDP,” the APC Senator stressed.

  • PDP chair: Ortom is still our member

    •APC spokesman: you’re yet to recover from defeat

    Benue State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Dr. Samuel Agbo has said Governor Samuel Ortom is still a member of the party, according to party  guidelines.

    Addressing the first news conference since the party lost the governorship and presidential elections, Dr. Agbo, who was with the Deputy Chairman, Zone B, Godwin Ayihe, Secretary, Bem Dzoho and Deputy Chairman, Zone A, Alhaji Ibrahim Anor, said Ortom, who served the party as secretary, deputy chairman, national auditor and minister was supposed to tender his letter of resignation to the national secretariat in Abuja, instead of the ward chairman.

    He said going by the PDP constitution, “the governor is still our member.”

    The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Tahav Agerzua, said PDP’s statement was an indication that the party had not recovered from the trauma of defeat in the last elections.

    Said he: “The trauma has affected the chairman’s memory, reasoning and logic. Otherwise, how can he claim that Governor Ortom is still a member of his party when the Federal High Court in Makurdi dismissed the PDP case, which sought to establish that claim?

    “Before the court decision, Governor Ortom resigned from the PDP on December 9 last year and handed over his resignation letter to the PDP Ward chairman at Nzorov Ward of Guma Local Government, Felix Agbaka.

    “How can Dr. Agbo forget so soon that the people came out in April with a determination to throw away the yoke of a party that brought them untold hardship and bad governance, which led to the collapse of government institutions?

    “How can he forget so soon that the electorate were against the PDP that the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not need to rig anywhere, but just to protect the votes of its candidates?

    “Rather, it was the PDP that engaged in massive rigging in many parts of the state.

    “It beats one’s imagination that someone can be talking about constitutional provisions, yet he forgets or glosses over one of the most fundamental, which is the freedom of association.

    “Maybe the PDP runs a prison and its officials have to shout of a jailbreak anytime a member leaves.

    “Besides, the responsibility of interpreting the constitution is that of the courts of law and not that of an interested party, who is both a complainant and a judge in his own matter.

    “Agbo’s statement amounts to a tantrum of a bad loser yet to recover from the trauma of a defeat.”

  • Buhari: Presidency tackles PDP over 30 days appraisal

    Buhari: Presidency tackles PDP over 30 days appraisal

    The Presidency on Sunday faulted the call for prayers for the Buhari government by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which alleged inaction by the new administration in its first 30 days in office.
    The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, in a statement, said that Nigerians are already on the side of the administration and that the Buhari administration is on course.
    National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh in an earlier statement said that the enormity of the confusion surrounding the government and the ruling party in the last one month has made it imperative for Nigerians to pray.
    He said the success or failure of the Buhari administration would not only affect the President and his party but also the entire nation.
    Metuh made the call while giving a 30 day appraisal of the administration.
    Adesina said it requires scrupulous and painstaking planning to clean the PDP’s Augean Stable.
    “It is amusing to read what the National Publicity Secretary of the defeated Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, considers a 30 days appraisal of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
    “He wants Nigerians to join hands in prayers for the government, so that things would begin to move. What he does not know is that Nigerians had long formed such coalition. They are hands in hands, and that was what gave victory to President Buhari in the March 28, 2015 poll.
    Stressing that the national life was devalued across all sectors under PDP, Adesina said: “it takes meticulousness and sure-footedness to repair all the breaches. This, the Buhari administration will deliver.”
    “Metuh talks of people round the President conniving with bureaucrats to syphon money from the treasury. This must be deja vu, as it was the pastime of the immediate past administration, and the enormity of the sleaze will be evident when stolen money, to the tune of billions of dollars, is recovered, and returned to the national treasury soon.”
    In his statement Metuh said PDP was deeply worried that the ” President who promised to unveil his cabinet two weeks after his inauguration, has not been able to decide on key appointments such as ministers, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief of Staff and advisers in key sectors of the economy.”
    “This is more so as the delay has brought government business in ministries, departments and agencies to a dangerous standstill with coordination of important policies vested on ministers and the SGF now in tatters while the system drifts.”

  • I’ve no deal with PDP, Ekweremadu, says Saraki

    I’ve no deal with PDP, Ekweremadu, says Saraki

    •Promises reconciliation with aggrieved senators, party leaders 

    Senate President Bukola Saraki  claimed yesterday that he had nothing to do with the re-emergence of Ike Ekweremadu as Deputy Senate President at the June 9 controversial election at the Upper Chamber.

    Saraki, whose choice as Senate President went against the wish of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), also denied receiving any message to attend a party meeting at the International Conference Centre (ICC) on the day.

    He spoke at his maiden press conference in Abuja as Senate President.

    He said that contrary to the insinuation in many quarters, he had no deal with Ekweremadu or the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Ekweremadu becoming deputy senate president.

    All he did, according to him, was to reach out to all Senators to support his (Saraki’s) bid to head the Senate.

    His words: “On the morning of the inauguration, I didn’t finish meeting until 4:00 of that day and I had got information that efforts would likely be made to make sure that I didn’t get access into the chambers.

    “So, as early as 4:00am and 5:00am, I had made contingency plans that I must get into the National Assembly because the plan before was that Senators-elect should go to the Transcorp Hilton Hotel around 8:00clock and 9:00am to proceed to the National Assembly.

    “But I was advised that it would not be safe or secure for me to do that because some people made sure that if I didn’t get into the chambers, it would not be possible for me to be nominated for the nomination to be seconded and for me to accept the nomination.

    “I can tell you today that I was in the National Assembly Complex as early as 6:00 in the morning and I stayed in a car in the park from 6:00 in the morning till quarter to 10:00am.

    “This is the truth. I stayed there and I was there with no communication whatsoever.

    “So, anybody who said they spoke to me to go to the ICC, that is not true because I didn’t even know what was going on. All I was monitoring was how people were arriving at the complex.

    “It was at quarter to 10:00 that I got information that the Clerk to the National Assembly had entered the chamber.

    “So, I got out of the small car I was inside, stretched myself and put on my babariga because I didn’t have it on before then.

    “I walked from the car park into the chamber. That was why some of you would have seen that I looked very tired on that morning.

    “Even when I was in the chamber, I didn’t know what had transpired earlier on.

    “The only thing I observed was that it appeared that some of our Senators were not in the chamber and the fact that my colleagues arrived in batches, I had the opinion that they were on their way and by 10:00am, the programme started.

    “Before I knew it, my election had come and gone. Even my people were worried. It was only when I got into the chamber that they were relieved.”

    On the alleged pact between him and PDP Senators to vote for him and then choose Ekwermadu as Deputy President of the Senate, Saraki said there was no such deal.

    He blamed the re-election of  Ekweremadu to the position on the absence from the Senate chamber of greater majority of APC Senators.

    “Never in our wildest imagination did we envisage that some Senators would not be present on the day of the inauguration,” he said.

    “In my own view, and in the view of some of those who worked closely with me, I worked hard for my election.

    “I had direct contact with every single Senator, one on one; weeks leading to the election. I did not rely on anybody. I worked hard both in our party, the APC, and out of it.

    “I approached every Senator, I talked to them…we built confidence, not only in the APC, but also, in the PDP. I talked to them.

    “That was why I laugh when people said I had a deal with Ekweremadu or I had a hand in the emergence of Ekweremadu.

    “I didn’t need any deal to win. I had penetrated…There was no deal; I didn’t need any deal in the first place.

    “I had worked hard such that everybody who was a Senator, I campaigned hard and canvassed for their votes and won their confidence.

    “One of the meetings held at Transcorp Hilton, which Senator Godswill Akpabio co-chaired with Senator Ibrahim Gobir and a few others had both APC and PDP members in attendance.

    “At that meeting, if you heard most of them there, the position they took was that ‘this is the Senate President they want.’

    “Across party lines, they believe in me and that this is the Senate President that can lead us…there was no deal.

    “Sometimes, I wonder how some of our colleagues found themselves at the ICC. If it had been a case of the Clerk of the National Assembly making an announcement that the event had been postponed or it was no longer holding… There was no invitation. I’m sure some are asking now: what really happened?”

    Saraki also said that long before the June 9 election PDP Senators had made it clear that they would support him “without even meeting me because in their own meeting, majority had decided to vote for me.”

    He added: “In their own interest, strategically, they decided that, look this is a fait accompli because 30 of their own Senators were going to vote for this man anyway and the remaining felt it was better to join.

    “It wasn’t until 2:00am that they called us to tell us about their decision.

    “With regards to the deputy, when they told us that they had a candidate, we, too, told them we had a candidate for Deputy Senate President in the person of Senator Ali Ndume.

    “After our own meeting, it was our thinking that it was after the election of the Senate President that the two groups in APC would meet and we would agree on a candidate.

    “We never in our imagination thought they would not turn up. By the time we got there, we were only 24 while the PDP Senators were more than 40.

    “In an election, there is no way they would not have defeated us and that was what happened?

    “Now, when people say it was a deal, I say that if the Clerk to the National Assembly had started the procedure in the House of Representatives first and moved to the Senate thereafter, today, we, the APC, would have had the  deputy Senate President.

    “It is unfortunate that we have a PDP man as Deputy Senate President. It is painful. It is painful for any APC member because we went through the struggle. That was not what we signed for.

    “But it has happened; but it is unfortunate and it is not fair to put the blame on one side because it is a combination of errors and miscalculations that led us to have what we have.

    “So, to suggest that it was out of a desperate act to emerge is what I reject completely and those who followed the events would know that I didn’t have that deal to emerge.”

    Asked about his relationship with the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu he said: “he is one of the leaders of the party. We have great respect for him. Myself and him, we have worked very closely together on major issues in this party leading to this issue that were very important at different stages in the development of our party.

    “In this matter, as much as I wanted to win his support, unfortunately I didn’t happen. It happens like that.

    “I think at the end of the day we will look at the things we have done together that have gone well, many before now: three, four major issues.

    “One is a setback but I don’t think that that in any way should be what should dictate the kind of relationship that we have. I believe that we are both responsible and committed to the project of the party and idea that we would overcome this and move forward.

    “That’s our intention as part of the healing process too to be able to do that and it will happen.”

    On the process of healing in the Senate, he said “The process of healing is going on. It is just two weeks after the election. It is normal after an election like this, for this kind of position that was fiercely contested, there will be sentiments, there will be emotions.

    “If you can remember after the presidential primaries, for weeks there were huge sentiments and emotions. There are some people today who are now pretending that they love President Buhari more than us. They didn’t attend rallies, they sat in their houses. We were begging them.

    “What I’m saying is that two weeks for me is short in a healing process. We need to give some time. Two weeks is too short.

    “What I can assure you as somebody who has taken this position I will not stop until I see there is a full healing process, full reconciliation. Those that know me know that I’m a fair minded person. I will be fair to everybody because everybody too has contributed for us to get here.

    “Things have happened unfortunately, it cannot be a winner takes all; everybody must be part of that process. We will get there. During this period of recess, by the time we come back, I believe that we will be able pretty much to get together as united APC family.

    “I want my action to speak more than what I say. Let’s come in one month’s time. I’m confident that this will be a thing of the past. The issues before us when we were elected are greater than this.”

    Saraki also said that the talk about 2019 presidential election makes him sad.

    He said: “On 2019 aspiration, I hear a lot about this 2019 and honestly I feel very sad. I’m very, very sad that people are talking about 2019.”

     

  • PDP condemns fracas in House over positions

    PDP condemns fracas in House over positions

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemned  yesterday’s fracas in the House of Representatives, describing it as a show of shame and national embarrassment.

    The party said the development called to question the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC to democracy, unity and the stability of the country.

    According to the PDP, the row was a direct consequence of President Buhari’s lack of democratic credentials to rein in his party to respect the independence and sanctity of the legislative arm of government, as enshrined in the constitution.

    The statement  by PDP National Publicity Secretary Olisa Metuh, said: “The barbaric attempt to physically assault a duly elected Speaker and seize the mace, the authority of the House, was a direct attack on the Nigerian parliament which embodies the supremacy of the people and our freedom as a democratic nation”.

    The party said what Nigerians witnessed in the House on Thursday clearly underscored the fact that the APC has exhausted its excuses and has now imported its internal contradictions into an independent arm of government as a way to further cover its lack of ideas for governance.

    The statement also added that the dishonourable conduct by the APC lawmakers was an act from a script and that it did not come to it as a surprise, “given that they are bred and nurtured under a political platform that lacks discipline and thrives on violence as an unwritten manifesto”

    “We state unequivocally that the onus lies on President Buhari to ensure that all democratic institutions are harnessed for effectiveness, a responsibility he has apparently abdicated by allowing his personal interest to instigate division in the parliament, a tendency that poses great threat to the survival of our democracy and the stability of the nation”, the PDP said.

  • Court orders sack of Idu, PDP House of Reps member

    Court orders sack of Idu, PDP House of Reps member

    Justice Adeniyi Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja Thursday ordered the sack of Emeka Godwin Idu, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member of House of Representatives representing Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency of Anambra State.

    The judge also ordered the cancellation of the certificate of return issued him (Idu) by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Justice Ademola’s orders were on a judgment in a suit by Lynda Chuba-Okadigbo, who challenged the decision of the party to substitute her name, already accepted by the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), with that of Idu.

    Chuba-Ikpeazu had filed the suit on March 18, 2015, seeking among others to set aside the party’s decision.

    The PDP, INEC, the National Working Committee of the PDP and Idu were the defendants in the suit. But INEC did not file any defence in the suit.

    Justice Ademola held that the substitution of Chuba-Ikpeazu was wrong because it did not confirm with the requirement under the law.

    He held that legitimate substitution can only occur where the original candidate voluntarily withdraws or where he/she dies.

    He ordered the Speaker and the Clerk of the National Assembly to swear in Chuba-Ikpeazu as replacement for Idu immediately.

    The judge, who held that the plaintiff’s suit succeeds, granted all the prayers sought by the plaintiff.

    He held that the substitution of her name with that of Idu violated the provisions of sections 31(2)(j) and 50 of the PDP constitution; sections 31(1)(2) and 33 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended); section 222(c)of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Article 25 (xii) of the Electoral Guidelines for Primary Elections, 2014 of the PDP.

    He dismissed the contention of the Idu’s lawyer, Alex Izinyon (SAN) that court had no jurisdiction over the case since it was a pre-election matter that could only be entertained by a state High Court.

    Justice Ademola granted four ancillary orders “to meet the justice of the case and give effect to the court’s judgment.

    “The plaintiff, Honourable Lynda Chuba-Ikpeazu, is hereby declared as the 1st defendant’s (PDP’s) candidate for the House of Representatives with regard to the Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency.

    “It is also declared that the plaintiff,  Honourable Lynda Chuba-Ikpeazu, is the honourable member representing Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency in the Federal House of Representatives for this session.

    “The 4th defendant, Godwin Emeka Idu, is ordered to vacate that seat in the Federal House of Representatives whilst the certificate of return issued to him is hereby cancelled.

    “The 2nd defendant, INEC, is hereby ordered to issue certificate of return to  Honourable the rightful member representing Onitsha North/South in the House of Representatives.

    “Finally, the Honourable Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Clerk of the National Assembly are ordered to swear in Honourable Lynda Chuba Ikpeazu as member representing Onitsha North/South Federal Constituency in the Federal House of Representatives forthwith,” the judge said.