The Federal High Court in Abuja has announced date for the judgement in the suit filed by the authentic governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2023 general elections in Abia State, Dr Uche Sampson Ogah, challenging the parallel primary election that purportedly produced Mr Ikechi Emenike as the candidate of the party for the coming general elections in 2023.
His lawsuit comes on the backdrops of the outcome of the parallel gubernatorial primary elections held by the party, wherein two governorship candidates emerged at the recently conducted exercise in Abia State.
Both candidates took their battle to court seeking judicial interpretation on the authenticity of the conducted exercise, and the actual winner of the gubernatorial primary elections held by All Progressives Congress in the state.
They are the immediate past Minister of State for Mines and Steel Developmental, Dr Uche Sampson Ogah and the former Pro-chancellor and the Chairman Board Council of University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), Chief Ikechi Emenike.
However, during the resumed proceeding at the Federal High Court in Abuja, presiding judge, Justice Binta Nyako after taking arguments from parties fixed November 11, 2022 for judgement in the suit by Ogah.
Mr Solomon Umoh, SAN, counsel to the ex-Nigerian minister had during the resumed hearing in the matter, told the court that the direct primary election that produced him was monitored by officials of INEC and that a report to that effect was made available by the nation’s electoral umpire.
He urged the court to nullify the nomination of Ikechi Emenike and ordered INEC to publish his name as the lawful APC candidate.
AFRIPOST recalls that Ogah had sued Emenike, APC, Abdullahi Adamu and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the lawful candidate of the party for the 2023 general elections in Abia State.
AFRIPOST recalls that Ogah had also on 26th of May, 2022, emerged as the Abia governorship standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress in the recently concluded gubernatorial primary elections for the forthcoming 2023 general elections in Abia state.
He was declared the winner after he scored 141,952 votes to beat his closest rival, Paul Ikonne who scored 27,054.
Other gubernatorial aspirants includes, Chief Ikechi Emenike who polled 9,446, Emeka Atuma with 7,429, Obinna Oriaku with 5,553, Alex Otti scored 2,41, and Daniel Eke who got 1,953 at the keenly contested direct primaries.
On same May 26, a faction of the Abia chapter of the APC led by Kingsley Ononogbu, held a parallel gubernatorial primaries at different location in Umuahia, the state capital, purportedly choosed Ikechi Emenike, a former Pro-chancellor and the Chairman of the Board Council of the University of Nigeria Nsukka in Enugu State, Ikechi Emenike as governorship candidate of the party for the forthcoming 2023 main elections.