PDP Crisis Lingers as Court Rejects Anyanwu’s Bid to Stop INEC From Effecting His Removal

The embattled National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Samuel Anyanwu, has asked the Federal High Court in Abuja’s Justice Inyang Ekwo to prevent the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from removing him as the party’s secretary, but the court has denied his appeal.

Anyanwu was directed by Justice Ekwo to serve INEC and other defendants in his new lawsuit with notice to appear in court so that he could hear their arguments.

In an ex parte petition to the Federal High Court, Senator Anyanwu asked the judge to prevent INEC or any of its representatives from accepting or acting upon any written submissions or correspondence that came from the PDP or would come from it other than those that he personally signed.

Anyanwu further requested that Justice Ekwo prevent Ambassador Umar Damagun from sending any letters, papers, or written submissions to INEC unless they were signed by him in the motion that his attorney argued.

After considering Anyanwu’s arguments in favour of his claim, Justice Ekwo concluded in a succinct order that a case of urgency had been proven.

However, the court stated that he would like to speak with the defendants before making any orders and would not approve the plaintiff’s request through an ex parte motion.

In order to allow INEC and Damagun to appear in court and have their cases heard, he so directed Anyanwu to notify them of the new suit’s existence.

Justice Ekwo set a hearing date of February 24 and instructed the plaintiff to serve the two defendants with court documents.