Hopes of All Progressives Congress, APC, to present a governorship candidate in next year’s general election is becoming slimmer.
This is as the Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, yesterday, struck out the appeal by Ojukaye Flag-Amachree led faction of the APC in the state, challenging the decision of the state high court, which annulled its ward, local government and state congresses.
The court also dismissed applications for joinder by the governorship candidate of the Flag-Amachree led APC, in the state, Mr Tonye Cole, and sacked Chairman of the APC in the state, Mr Ojukaye Flag-Amachree, for not observing the 14 days rule of appeal.
Justice Chiwendu Nworgu of Rivers State High Court had in October, annulled all the congresses of the APC in the state, which produced Flag-Amachree and other excos in the state.
The special appeal panel set up to hear the matter between the two factions of the APC in the state led by Justice Abubakar Yahaya gave the ruling after the parties adopted their processes.
Yahaya, who read the unanimous judgment, said the applications of Cole and Amachree lacked merit and that the appeal against the lower court’s decision was filed out of time.
He however, reserved judgment in the appeal by the APC challenging the jurisdiction of Justice Nworgu to hear the matter in the first place, indefinitely.
The court held that the Ojukaye faction failed to seek leave of court before appealing against the judgement, adding that the judgement delivered by the lower court was a consent judgement.
Justice Yahaya said Flag-Amachree faction should have done the needful legally before approaching the court, even as he expressed sadness that the parties in the matter were all members of APC in the state.
Shortly after the judgement, counsel to Umar and 22 others, Patrick Luke said the ruling means that the ruling by Justice Nworgu still subsist and everybody is bound to obey the judgement.
However, counsel to Ojuakye and the APC, Emenike Ebete said they will approach the Supreme Court, while maintaining that his party’s candidates are intact.
