Eye witness reports
The supreme court today declares Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii as the authentic governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State.
Mr Odii will now fly the party’s standard in the 2023 gubernatorial election.
The supreme Court equally struck out the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which had declared Senator Obinna Ogba as the Governorship Candidate.
In the judgment read by justice Lawal Garba, the five-man panel headed by Justice Amina Augie noted that Ogba lacks the right of Appeal since he was not part of the suit when the matter came up at the trial court in Abakaliki, where Ogba’s candidature was upturned.
Justice Lawal held that the purported notice of appeal filed by Ogba on June 17, 22, which gave rise to the judgment of the lower court was incompetent in law as it was filed without the leave of court.
The court held that as a person having interest in a pre-election matter, but who was not made a party to the proceedings, ought to have obtained leave of the trial court to appeal as an interested party.
Justice Augie who agreed with the lead judgment distinguished her judgment in Ujogbo Vs Abba Umaro decision which the lower court relied upon in its decision.