Court suspends Oshiomhole as APC chairman

A federal capital territory (FCT) high court has suspended Adams Oshiomhole as national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Danlami Senchi, the judge, gave the order on Wednesday following an application of interlocutory injunction filed by one Oluwale Afolabi seeking the removal of Oshiomhole as APC national chairman.

”Oshiomhole will remain suspended pending the determination of the suit”, the judge held.

Senchi also said it was wrong of the APC to have kept Oshiomhole as chairman after he was suspended by his state chapter of the party.

Last November, the Edo chapter of the APC suspended Oshiomhole, who has been at daggers drawn with Godwin Obaseki, governor of the state.

The judge said Oshiomhole should not be granted access to the national secretariat of the party in Abuja.

In his application, Afolabi argued that Oshiomhole did not challenge the decision of the party to suspend him.

The applicant also said Oshiomhole should not enjoy the benefits of a member of the party since he has been suspended.

In January, Mustapha Salihu, APC national vice national north-east, said Oshiomhole should not be regarded as APC national chairman since he was suspended by his state chapter of the party.

Salihu said this while speaking with journalists at the end of the national working committee meeting of the party.

“I am here just to give you a brief of what transpired just now; the illegality that just transpired now. This has been prevalent in this party since Adams Oshiomhole took over,” he said.

“We also want to follow up with the suspension of the national chairman, to know the status, whether or not, as we speak, he is fit to be a national chairman or whether that court order is still subsisting which before the end of today, I will let you know. I will find out if there is any court order that vacates it.

“If there is no court that vacates it, I will produce the subsisting court order for you for publication and will write to INEC, the DSS, he should not be recognised as the national chairman.”

There have been calls for Oshiomhole’s removal as APC national chairman. The Progressive Governors Forum had said the party could no longer win elections with him at the helm.