A Federal High Court in Abuja, yesterday, extended the December 15 interim order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from taking any action against the 26 Rivers House of Assembly members, who defected to All Progressives Congress (APC).
Justice Donatus Okorowo extended the order following an application by counsel for the embattled lawmakers, Steve Adehi (SAN) and supported by Ken Njemanze (SAN), who appeared for the Rivers House of Assembly.
Although PDP’s lawyer, Adeyemi Ajibade (SAN), opposed the request, the presiding judge agreed that based on Order 26, Rule 10 of the FHC, the court had discretionary power to grant the plea in the interest of justice.
He held that he was persuaded by the reasons advanced by Adehi and Njemanze that granting the order would be better in the interest of justice.
Justice Okorowo, who adjourned the matter till January 24 for hearing of the request, said: “Application for the extension of the order of the lifespan of the ex-parte order pending the hearing and determination of motion on notice is hereby granted.”
But the PDP has insisted on declaring vacant seats of the embattled legislators, stating they were no longer members of the state legislature.
Its counsel and National Legal Adviser, Ajibade (SAN), told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) shortly after Justice Okorowo adjourned the lawmakers’ suit to next month.
He said though President Bola Tinubu might have intervened in the dispute between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, the party stood on what the Constitution says on defection.
“PDP as a party, we are standing on the side of the Constitution of the country. It is not about issues of an agreement, but by the Constitution, we all swore to uphold.
“The governor himself swore to uphold the Constitution likewise the President.
“I am not against the President, calling for the resolution of the matter. He is the chief security officer of this country, and he has every right to intervene in the issue.
“But besides that, we, as a political party, own those seats, and certainly we are interested in those seats.
“Whatever the governor is doing in this matter that concerns whether resolution on the issue, no resolution has been brought to Wadata Plaza on this matter.
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“But as a political party, we cannot leave the seats and the votes willingly given to the party by the people of Rivers State,” the senior lawyer submitted.
NAN recalled that the judge had, on December 15, granted the ex-parte motion filed by the 26 defected lawmakers.
The court restrained INEC from conducting fresh elections to fill their seats.
It also stopped the electoral umpire, PDP and the House from declaring their seats vacant and withdrawing their Certificates of Return pending hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
The plaintiffs had, in the motion ex-parte marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1681/2023/ dated and filed December 13, sued INEC, PDP, the Assembly, Clerk of the assembly, Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and Department of State Service (DSS) as 1st to 6th defendants respectively.
At the resumed hearing yesterday, plaintiffs’ counsel, Adehi, informed the court that he had a motion on notice which originally was meant for hearing the same day.
He, however, sought an adjournment following the fact that Lukman Fagbemi (SAN) had withdrawn appearance and a new counsel had entered appearance in the matter for the 3rd defendant (House) and in view of the fact that the 2nd defendant (PDP) had just served on them their response just yesterday morning.
“In any case, I ask that the matter be further adjourned to enable us to serve the 3rd and 4th defendants (House and Clerk) and to also enable us to reply on points of law to the process served on us by counsel to the 2nd defendant,” Adehi said.
Then, Njemanze told the court that he had the instruction of the 3rd defendant (House) to take over the brief with the original letter of instruction backing this after the withdrawal of the earlier counsel, Fagbemi.
He equally stated that a memorandum of appearance had already been filed.
A lawyer from Fagbemi’s chamber confirmed to the court that the learned silk had withdrawn from the suit.
On his part, Ajibade said he had an application challenging the jurisdiction of the court to handle the suit, and the competence of the suit itself.
He, therefore, prayed the court for an order discharging the December 15 interim order granted by the court.
