- Bars Makarfi-led PDP from holding convention, orders IG to enforce order
- INEC yet to receive Abuja court ruling
- Sherrif calls for Chief Judge, NJC’s intervention
Abuja – The crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may have set the stage for a battle of supremacy between Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja and Justice Mrs Ibrahim Watila of the Port Harcourt Division of the court as a result of two conflicting judgements emanating from the two courts over the planned August 17 Makarfi-led PDP convention.
Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday barred the Makarfi-led PDP from holding its planned National Convention on Aug. 17, in Port Harcourt, pending hearing and determination of the substantive suit filed Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff.
Justice Okon Abang also barred the PDP from presenting and electing candidates as National Officers of the party.
The court gave the ruling in a motion on notice filed by the factional national chairman of the party, Sen. Ali Modu Sherriff, against the convention.
Justice Abang further restrained INEC from monitoring any convention pending the determination of the substantive suit.
Furthermore, the court ordered the Inspector General of Police to enforce the order against the planned convention.
Besides, the judge directed Sheriff to obtain Form 48, so as to commit anybody or group who may disobey the order.
Abang took his fit at Justice Mrs Ibrahim Watila of the Port Harcourt Division of the court for dabbling into the PDP matter in spite of the pending one in Abuja.
He said that the Port Harcourt division would have done well if it had referred the suit instituted by Sen. Ben Obi instead of assuming jurisdiction.
Apparently furious with the conflicting decisions of the two courts; Abang said the Port Harcourt division has set a stage for legal combatants to determine which legal decisions to be obeyed.
“This division is strongly with Port Harcourt on jurisdiction, but the Port Harcourt division should not have assumed jurisdiction because the Supreme Court has made it clear that when a situation like this arise, a judge should confer with the CJ.
“Let me make it clear that Port Harcourt division cannot overrule me; any party who disobeyed my decision should have himself to blame,’’ Abang warned.
He adjourned to Sept. 7, for hearing of the substantive suit.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said it was yet to receive the Federal High Court, Abuja judgment on the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) scheduled for Wednesday in Port Harcourt.
This is contained in a message from the INEC Deputy Director on Publicity and Voter Education, Mr Nick Dazang, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.
Dazang said that INEC would come up with its position on motoring of the convention, adding that its staff were on standby for further directive.
“Even though the commission has been served the Port Harcourt High Court judgment, it is yet to be served the Abuja High Court judgment by Justice Abang.
“ As soon as it (the Commission) is served the Abuja High Court judgment, it will take a decision.
“In the meantime, and following the Port Harcourt judgment, our monitoring staff are on standby,’’ Dazang said.
The Nigerian Observer recalls that the Federal High Court, Abuja, had on Monday barred the PDP from holding its planned National Convention on Aug. 17, in Port Harcourt, pending hearing and determination of the substantive suit filed by Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff.
In the same vain, Justice Ibrahim Watila of the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt had also on Monday ordered that the party’s National Caretaker Committee should proceed with the convention in Port Harcourt as scheduled.
Watila also ordered that INEC and security agencies should monitor the convention.
But in contrast, Justice Okon Abang also barred the PDP from presenting and electing candidates as National Officers of the party.
It would also be recalled that Justice Liman Makhmud in Port Harcourt, had on July 4, validated the PDP convention held in Port Harcourt on May 21.
Sherrif calls for Chief Judge, NJC’s intervention
Disputed National Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Sen. Ali Modu Sheriff, has called on the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) to intervene in the party’s several judicial matters.
Also to intervene, according to him, is the Federal Judicial Service Commission (FJSC).
Sheriff told a news conference on Tuesday in Abuja that the CJN and FJSC should look into orders of judges in the Federal High Court (FHC), Port-Harcourt, on PDP national convention scheduled for Wednesday.
Sheriff expressed shock with the ruling from Port Harcourt “even when all the judges in Nigeria were on annual vacation’’.
He said that concerned Nigerians also frowned at the conversion of an exparte motion, with 14-day life span, to an interlocutory order on the next day by the Port Harcourt court.
“Most judiciary don’t want exparte motion because it denies justice to others. But, let’s accept that the judge decide to do that, the life span of the exparte motion is 14 days.
“This means you have time to serve the other people to respond. On that Thursday, the judge gave exparte motion; the next day he converted that exparte motion to interlocutory order.
“On Monday, he sat and heard the main case to give a ruling or judgement today (Tuesday) at 2 p.m. without allowing us as defendants to defend ourselves,’’ Sheriff said.
He alleged that when his faction’s lawyers went to court, “the judge authorised all the registry staff to run away’’.
“The truth about it is that the whole thing is a hoax. First, the matter is already in Abuja.
“Ben Obi who is also a party in Abuja left the court because the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt has already been taken over by Gov. Wike, who believes that he has public money to do whatever he wants to do.
“These need urgent attention.
“We are calling on the Chief Judge of the nation to look into Port Harcourt division of the judiciary; otherwise, they will bring anarchy into this country,’’ he said.
Sheriff, who described judges in the Supreme Court as “first class’’, and those in the Court of Appeal as “second to none’’, added that the problem of Nigeria was few judges in the Federal High Courts.
“Urgent attention needed to be taken by the chief judge of the federation, chief judge of the Federal High Court and the Judicial Service Commission.
“Unless those kinds of people are removed completely, Nigeria will have problem.
“W are joining all other Nigerians to call on CJN and JSC to remove these bad elements in the judiciary, otherwise we will have problem,’’ he stressed.
The chairman added that his faction would also present a formal complaint to JSC.
“We are saying this because it is wrong; justice is for everybody, but a situation where judges are compromised is wrong.’’
Sheriff said that since an Abuja High Court had stopped the convention in Port Harcourt, “whatever they do in the convention would be illegal and unacceptable.
“I will not recognise any of these gatherings. I will pursue the Rule of Law until justice is done. This party is for Nigerians. ‘’
He re-emphasised that he was ready to step down as PDP national chairman “if tomorrow justice is done; if elections are conducted in Abuja and the people are allowed to choose who they want as leaders.
“But, unless and until we do that, I have the right, I have been elected by the National Executive Council (NEC) for specific period of time.
“That period will not finish until 2018. But I am ready to go tomorrow. Let this party not be taken over by one person, we cannot allow it.’’
