The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division on Friday, set aside the orders by Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja barring three chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from further attending any meeting of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) or participating in deliberations or proceedings of the meetings in any manner.
The three PDP chieftains are the party’s former National Chairman, Uche Secondus, sacked Rivers Governor, Celestine Omehia and a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Austin Opara.
Delivering judgment in the three separate appeals, a three-member panel of Justices of the Court of Appeal unanimously upheld the appeals filed by Secondus, Omehia and Opera for being meritorious.
The appellate court held that the issue of whether members of a party should attend the party’s meetings or participate in any of its activities are issues to be determined by the political party.
The three-member panel was of the view that issues relating to whether or not members of a political party attend the party’s meetings being internal affairs of the party, are not justiciable and on which the court lacked jurisdiction.
It held that the Federal High Court ought not to have entertained the cases because it lacked the jurisdiction to hear and determine the suits dealing with issues within the realm of the internal affairs of the political party.
The Court of Appeal proceeded to declare null and void the proceedings conducted in the three cases before the Federal High Court, voided same, including the restraining orders made ex-parte made by Justice Ekwo on April 5.
It would be recalled that, the trial court presided over by Justice Inyang Ekwo had in April, refused to vacate the execution of the order of the court barring Secondus from attending the party’s meetings slated for April 18 and 19, 2024.
Justice Ekwo, who refused to stay the order in a ruling, also refused similar request made by Celestine Omehia and former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara.
The judge in his ruling in three separate applications filed by Secondus, Omehia and Opara, held that the case of the applicants were grossly incompetent and lacking in merit.
Justice Ekwo had earlier, issued an interim order restraining Secondus from participating in the meeting of the PDP, pending the hearing of the substantive suit before the court.
He had made the order following an ex-parte application brought by one Titus Jones, a member of the PDP from Ward 5, Ikuru Town, Andoni Local Government Area (LGA) of Rivers State.
Jones in a suit marked marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/440/2024, joined Secondus; PDP; Acting PDP Chairman, Umar Damagun; PDP Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu; PDP NEC; PDP National Working Committee (NWC); PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as 1st to 8th defendants, respectively.
Jones also sought an order restraining the NEC, NWC, party’s chairman, secretary, and BoT from allowing Secondus to attend any of the meetings pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice, having been suspended from the party.
The court’s decision affected a similar suit seeking to also bar Omehia and Opara from attending the PDP’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting pending the hearing and determination of the main matter.
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