APC in Rivers Hit Roadblock as Court Nullifies Congresses

The state, local government, and ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, which elected Tony Okocha as their chairman, have been declared invalid by a state high court located in Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State.

It referenced the court’s ruling prohibiting the party from holding the congress.

In his decision earlier Friday, Presiding Judge Justice Godswill Ogbomanu declared the party’s congresses null and void, citing the court’s order prohibiting the party from holding the congress. He also fined the APC N10 million.

Emenike Ebette, the lawyer to the plaintiffs, praised the court’s decision and called it “justice.”

He said justice had been served because they actually stole a march against the claimants. “When a matter is before the court, the subject matter is there, and the courts say, ‘Don’t do it, and you go ahead in a brazen manner, as the court so found it,” he added.

Ebette noted that the court has the power under its disciplinary jurisdiction to set aside such acts, adding that the court granted a stay of proceedings, but it had to restore its dignity and integrity. He alluded to the fact that what the court has done this evening is in line with the law.

On his part, however, the defendants’ counsel, William Wobodo, says they will inform their clients of the NWC of the court ruling before deciding on the next line of action.

“The good thing is that before today, there was already an appeal duly entered at the Court of Appeal with a suit number CA/PH/523/2024 wherein the defendants are challenging the jurisdiction of the court to decide on the internal affairs of the APC,” Wobodo.

“The Supreme Court has said, even in the case of Aguma versus Dele Moses, which arose from APC River State and went all the way to the Supreme Court, where the Supreme Court said the internal affairs of the APC or a political party is solely the affairs of a political party,” he said.