SaharaReporters reported on December 29, 2023, that a Federal High Court sitting in Enugu State had ordered the PDP to swear in Hon. Udeh Okoye as its National Secretary of the party.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has declared Senator Samuel Anyanwu as the legitimate national secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
SaharaReporters reported on December 29, 2023, that a Federal High Court sitting in Enugu State had ordered the PDP to swear in Hon. Udeh Okoye as its National Secretary of the party.
The court in a certified true copy of the judgment obtained by SaharaReporters, held that the suit was not an abuse of the court process.
The court said, “That the plaintiff had locus standi to institute the case and that the suit was justiciable” as it was only the 3rd defendant (Samuel Anyanwu) that was trying to make the 1st defendant (PDP) appear as a lawless entity.
The court thereby ordered that the 3rd defendant in the suit, Senator Samuel Nnaemeka Anyanwu could not by stipulations of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999) as amended, the PDP constitution, and the election guidelines of PDP, be the National Secretary of PDP and at the same time be its governorship candidate in the Imo State governorship election.
“That by doing so, he made himself an emperor that was both judge and contestant in the PDP gubernatorial primary.
“That Anyanwu ceased being the National Secretary of PDP the moment he became its gubernatorial flag bearer in Imo State, and that his replacement with Hon. Udeh Okoye by the PDP South East Zonal Executive Committee was in conformity with the dictates of the PDP constitution,” the court said.
SaharaReporters had reported how the party’s national chairman, Umar Damagum-led PDP consistently disobeyed court orders.
The court on October 20, 2023, ruled and ordered the National Working Committee to acknowledge Udeh-Okoye as the PDP National Secretary, as nominated by the PDP South East Zonal Executive Committee.
Earlier, on November 7, 2023, the Enugu High Court reaffirmed its prior order and specified as follows: “The interim order compelling PDP to recognise Hon. SKE Udeh-Okoye as the valid National Secretary remains in force until the hearing of the motion on notice on November 27, 2023, or the determination of the Appeal in the appellate court, whichever occurs first."
But the Federal High Court, Abuja Division in a judgement delivered on Tuesday, held that under the PDP's constitution, Anyanwu’s four-year tenure should end on December 9, 2025.
Justice Inyang Ekwo barred the national leadership of the PDP from appointing any other person as acting national secretary.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the court on November 23, 2023, stopped the PDP from removing Anyanwu as national secretary pending the hearing and determination of the substantive matter.
The order followed an ex-parte motion by Dr Joshua Musa (SAN) on behalf of two members of the party; Geoffrey Ihentuge, the PDP chairman in the Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo and Apollo’s Godspower, the PDP chairman in the Owerri Municipal Local Government Area of the state
Meanwhile, the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, Federal High Court in Enugu and the Enugu State High Court all have equal jurisdiction. Therefore, a judgement given by one cannot override the judgement of another.