Ward congress: Enugu court bars PDP from accepting results

Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice Innocent Umezuluike, yesterday restrained the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from using or acting on the list or names purported to be the list of delegates elected during the recent ward and local government congresses, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit on the matter.

The ruling came as efforts were being made by the two factions of the party, led by Governor Sullivan Chime and Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, to douse the crisis.
However, the court order was seen to be a major setback to the Elder David Aja-led faction loyal to Ekweremadu who had relied on the purported ward congress list which had become controversial to sail through during the party’s primaries, even as the Chief Ikeji Asogwa-led faction had insisted that no congress was held in the 260 wards of the state on November 1.
The order was made barely 48 hours after a pronouncement made by the national leadership of the party before the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday, that the ward congress did not hold in Enugu, contrary to erroneous claims by the Aja faction.
In its ruling on a suit filed by one Charles Okafor, challenging the validity of the alleged congress, Justice Umezuluike also ordered an accelerated hearing of the substantive suit, citing the urgency of the matter.
He further granted the plaintiff seven days within which to file his statement of claim and serve the same on the defendant (PDP) and granted the defendant 14 days to file its statement of defence and serve the same on the plaintiff.
The matter was adjourned to December 8 for definite hearing.
A faction of the PDP in Enugu State, led by Elder Aja had claimed that the ward congress was conducted ‘peacefully’ in the state and published a list it claimed contained the names of ‘elected delegates’.
But the state executive committee of the party, led by Asogwa countered the claim, saying the congress never held in Enugu due to the non-arrival of members of the electoral panel and materials from Abuja on the scheduled date.

… Delegates flay CJ’s injunction 

Delegates elected at the November 1, 2014 ward congresses of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Enugu State have flayed the ex-parte order granted by the state High Court purportedly restraining the PDP from acting on the list or names of delegates elected during the party’s congresses pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit brought by a group loyal to Governor Sullivan Chime.
Reacting on behalf of the body of ward delegates elected at the congresses in question, a member of the three-man ward delegates, who emerged from Umuabi Ward in Udi Local Government Area of the state, Emeka Aneke, described the ex-parte injunction granted by the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Innocent Umezulike, as a “gross abuse of court processes.”
He said: “We, the elected ward delegates, take exceptions to this gross abuse of court processes by the state chief judge. It is a public knowledge that the matter is a subject of litigation at Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, which had granted an injunction restraining the PDP and its principal agents from receiving any other result of the November 1, ward delegates election of the party other than the names submitted by the acting Chairman of the party, Elder David Aja and the electoral committee of the party.
“It could be recalled that APC governors had boasted that they had some members of the PDP Governors’ Forum working for them to frustrate the party in the forthcoming general elections before decamping, and this second injunction coming on the heels of an earlier injunction and various subterranean moves, seeking to undermine Elder Aja from carrying out his legitimate duties leaves no one in doubt that Governor Sullivan Chime is indeed an enemy within.
“We are now truly convinced that although the governor claims to have accepted not to join the race for the Enugu West Senatorial District, he is hell-bent on working with opposition forces to ensure that the PDP does not present candidates for the 2015 general elections, even as we have it on good authority that the governor and his men are making plans to field candidates on another party platform in the state.
“They deliberately served the Enugu PDP instead of the national headquarters to ensure that the PDP did not make an appearance at the court and we are already sending a petition to the National Judicial Council (NJC) to investigate the processes leading to this kabu-kabu injunction and the habitual abuse of ex-parte injunction by one man,” he said.