31st October, 2013
Nnamdi Felix / Abuja
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has fixed 24 January 2014 to deliver judgment in an appeal filed by Imo state Governor Rochas Okorocha, challenging the decision of an Appeal Court in Owerri, which joined former governor of the state, Chief Ikedi Ohakim, in an appeal instituted by Senator Ifeanyi Ararume, the candidate of then Action Congress of Nigeria in the governorship election held in the state in 2011.
Senator Ararume is challenging the 6 May 2011 supplementary elections conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission which ushered in Okorocha as the governor of state.
Proceedings at the court was disrupted by conflicting appearance by different lawyers who claimed to have been briefed by different persons claiming to be the national Chairman of the All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA, under which platform Okorocha won the election before defecting to the All Progressives Congress.
Ahmed Raji, a senior advocate of Nigeria had announced his appearance for the party before another lawyer, Mr. Oba Maduabuchi, stood and informed the court that he was briefed on October 30, 2013, by Chief Maxi Okwu, whom he said is the national chairman of APGA, to handle the matter.
A surprised Ahmed Raji however told the court that he was briefed on October 11, 2013 by APGA leadership in a letter signed by Chief Umeh as national chairman and Abdullahi Shinkafi as National Secretary.
The court, after hearing the argument of both lawyers resolved it in favour of Ahmed Raji whom it accepted as the authentic counsel for APGA since the party’s national chairman and secretary had confirmed that he was duly briefed on October 11, 2013.
The court thereafter struck out the name of Action Congress of Nigeria from the court documents as the party is no longer in existence in Nigeria.
Parties in the appeal therafter adopted their briefs of argument before the judgment. Date was fixed.
Governor Okorocha’s lawyer, Chief Niyi Akintola, a senior advocate of Nigeria, urged the court to reject the preliminary objection filed against their appeal by Ohakim.
The Imo state High Court in Owerri, had dismissed Ararume’s suit on the ground that the subject matter of the case was a post election matter which ought to have been submitted to election tribunal for adjudication.
Following that decision, Ararume and his party approached a Court of Appeal also in Owerri to challenge the High Court’s decision. When the appeal came up for hearing at the Court of Appeal, former Governor Ikedi Ohakim appeared and sought to be joined in the case to enable him challenge the High Court’s judgment. The court obliged him and made him a party in the appeal.
Okorocha had opposed Ohakim’s application to join but the Court of Appeal, in a ruling delivered by Justice Hussein Mukhtar, dismissed Okorocha’s objection and joined Ohakim as an appellant in the case.