Rivers opposition parties in jubilation as National PDP withdrawals all cases against them

* Appeal Court Dismisses all Appeals against, APC, Accord 

Daniel Efe/Port Harcourt

The camps of all the opposition parties which were dragged to jubilant mood today, Friday February 3, 2023, as National leadership of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, withdrew all cases against them at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt.

The beneficiaries from the sudden withdrawals of all suits by national leadership of PDP are Dumo-Lulu Briggs, Governorship candidate for Accord, all candidates for the national and State Assembly, Tonye Cole, APC Governorship candidate and candidates for national and State Assembly. The cases were subsequently dismissed.

Recall that on Monday 30/01/23 at the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, the counsel for the PDP, Emmanuel Ukala, SAN, withdrew from the appeal instituted by the Rivers State PDP against the Rivers State governorship candidate of Accord, Dumo Lulu-Briggs.

The SAN notified the court that he had been debriefed by the National leadership of the PDP, and can no more represent the PDP in the case.

In a statement to the press, the Counsel for Accord, Abiodu Owonikoko, SAN stated that the Accord legal team was ready to argue PDPs appeal of the judgment of the 3 cases in favour of Accord; only to be confronted with processes indicating that PDP has opted to withdraw each of the 3 Appeals. The Court of Appeal therefore dismissed each of the appeals against Accord,SDP and APC clear the coast all political parties to campaign and run for both federal and state offices. 

The motion to discontinue PDP from the suits was announced by the National Legal Adviser through it’s Counsel, Johnson Usman.

When the matter came up before Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt, counsel to Accord informed the court about a notice of discontinuation of the matter by the PDP which was confirmed by the PDP State legal Adviser, Kingsley Chukwu.

The three man panel led by Justice Joseph Ikyegh after listening to the parties, dismissed the appeals against Accord and All Progressives Congress, APC, Social Democratic Party, SDP, as well as other parties in the state following request by Counsel to Accord, Abdullahi Muhammad, SAN.

Speaking to Journalists outside the Courtroom, Counsel to Accord, Abdullahi Muhammad, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, and that of all the candidates of Accord, Abiodun Owonikoko explained what transpired in court and why they asked the court to dismiss the suit rather than striking it out.

The National leadership of PDP had on Monday through a letter from the National Legal Adviser who was represented by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Johnson Usman, SAN, took over the prosecution of the matters, indicating that they never sent anyone to file a suit on their behalf.

Meanwhile, in a separate development, the Senator Magnus Abe, the Governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, and candidates of his party also recorded triple legal victories today.

Recall that in reaction to the action PDP, the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike stated that it is an act of anti-party on the part of the national leadership of PDP to tell lawyers handling legal suits on behalf of the PDP in the State to dissociate themselves from the cases.

The PDP in Rivers State had taken some political parties in the State to court over noncompliance to the regulations and laws of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the conduct of their various primaries.

Governor Wike made the accusation against the national leadership of the party when he spoke at State School Premises, Okehi 1, venue of the Rivers State PDP campaign flag off rally in Etche Local Government Area on Monday.

He said instead of the PDP national leadership to support the suits by the PDP in Rivers, it has asked lawyers handling the various legal matters to withdraw legal representations.

The Rivers State governor stated that anti-party begets anti-party and since the PDP national has started the anti-party game, it will get anti-party in return.

“We have caught them. They are the ones engaged in anti-party. I told them anti-party begets anti party. You know we carried these small parties (APC, SDP) to court for failing to do what the law says.

“The people in Abuja that say they are national have gone to collude with them (opposition parties) to write our lawyers a letter that they should take their hands off, in order to kill the cases we filed. I have told our lawyers to withdraw from the matters. I will hit them back by tomorrow.

“Nobody hurts us without sustaining a scar. Anybody who dares to touch us in Rivers State, I will inflict many scars on him and we have started it. We are voting for our people here. Now you have told us you are doing anti-party. We will show you what anti party is. Already, we have caught them red-handed.”

He vowed that his administration and the PDP will surely retaliate. The first scar was perhaps the cancellation of the initial approval given to the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council to use the Adokye Amiesimaka Stadium.