A Rivers State High Court presided by Justice Sika Aprioku, in Port Harcourt has sacked the Caretaker Committee of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state led by Tony Okocha as inaugurated by the National Working Committee of the party.
Some members of the party, Sam Etetegwung, Banarth Ezemoye and others, had filed the suit seeking that Beke’s led leadership of the party in State be reinstated after they were suspended and subsequently removed from office by the national leadership of APC.
However, Justice Aprioku during his ruling yesterday, issued a perpetual injunction restraining Okocha’s led CTC from distracting the Beke’s led APC leadership pending the expiration of their four years tenure.
The court also told the national leadership of APC to recognise Beke’s led executive as authentic leadership of the party till the expiration of their tenure.
Justice Aprioku further slammed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for supporting the desolution of elected executives of APC through out the suit, cautioning that “leadership of political parties must learn to obey their own constitution and stop acting recklessly and in impunity in managing their own party”.
Aprioku held that the National Working Committee of APC failed to prove reasons for or the actions which they said was in violation to the party and Nigeria Constitution, insisting that they relied on hear say allegation of anti party activities which was not demonstrated by the defendants in the suit.
The judge who dismissed preliminary objections by the defendants on the issue of justification and application for joinder by a set of individuals who had earlier sought to join in the suit further held that the national leadership APC disobey their own constitution by not giving fair hearing to the party executive and thereby award N300, 000 as cost in favour of Beke’s led APC.
Meanwhile, the embattled CTC chairman of APC, Okocha has stated that his leadership will challenge judgement of Justice Aprioku in Apex court, advising his supporters to be calm and remain focus to commitment to party.
Okocha who briefed journalists in Port Harcourt, in reaction to the judgement, said the ruling did not come to them by surprise, insisting that the judgement was influenced.
Okocha who revealed that he has been reappointed by the party to continue manning the affairs of the party in state, stressed that he did not lobby to be in the position but the NWC of the party found him worthy after they discovered that the Beke’s leadership was involved in alleged anti-party.
“We will challenge whatever they have done at the court of appeal. Thereafter they or us will go back to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court will decide. I want to tell members of the APC in Rivers State to remain focused and committed.
“I would like to say that it didn’t sound like a surprise to us that the judge took that voyage to perdition. Don’t forget that in my press briefing in Abuja, I had alleged that Justice Sika Aprioku was contracted for a hatchet job against the APC, so are we not justified about what we said initially?
“It was the NWC looking at the constitution and the judgements of courts that proved that Emeka Beke, Sam Etetegwung and all those that went to court to challenge were actually involved in anti-party activities.
“I didn’t lobby to be chairman of the caretaker committee, none of my members lobbied. I had a job. So the party in their wisdom decided to lay off an EXCO that has been proven to have been anti the party in their activities, that’s how we emerged”.
He added: “It is not a problem, it is court of first instance, this matter may travel to the Supreme Court, so I want to say to you, be calm, don’t be in a hurry, be rest assured that we are equal to the task.
They made attempts at me to bring money and I said no. Look at the law”.
Also reacting to the judgement, the APC chairman, Beke thanked the judiciary for upholding justice in the party’s leadership tussle.
Beke who spoke with journalists, after the judgement at the party’s secretariat in Port Harcourt, said is a victory for democracy and a testament to the party’s commitment to the rule of law.
He emphasised that the party will not be intimidated or deterred from participating in the October 5 local government elections, citing President Bola Tinubu democratic credentials.
Beke expressed confidence that the National Chairman of the APC will respect the court’s judgment and hinted at a stakeholders’ meeting to chart the party’s future course.
He however, called for democracy to be allowed to thrive in Rivers State, condemning the bombing of Action Peoples Party secretariat as “a shame” and “not democracy at all”.
Blessing Ibunge
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