‘We’ve petitioned NJC’ — Chekwas Okorie faults judgement recognising Ezeokewa as APGA chairman

Chekwas Okorie, founder of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), has faulted a court judgment recognising Sylvester Ezeonwuka as the national chairman of the party.

The ruling, delivered last week by Justice James Omotosho of the federal high court in Abuja, directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to acknowledge Ezeonwuka as the “authentic” chairman of APGA.

BACKGROUND

The APGA leadership dispute involves three contenders: Ezeonwuka, Victor Oye, and Edozie Njoku.

In October 2021, the supreme court affirmed an appeal court judgment recognising Oye as the national chairman of the party.

Following protests that trailed the judgment, the supreme court ruled that Njoku was not a party to the judgment.

In March 2023, a five-member panel of the apex court ruled that in the 2021 judgment, Njoku’s name was erroneously written as Oye.

Mohammed Lawal, who read the judgment, said the court has the power to review its verdict and correct an “accidental slip or error” when it is brought to its attention.

In reviewing the 2021 judgment, the court expunged the part where Oye’s name was written as the national chairman of the party.

The court delivered judgment following a motion that was brought before it by Njoku.

‘A JUDICIAL OVERREACH’

In the latest development, Okorie condemned Omotosho’s ruling as “provocative, damning, and audacious”.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, Okorie argued that the judgment directly contradicts the supreme court’s earlier pronouncements on the matter.

He also accused the court of overstepping its bounds by allegedly recognising Ezeonwuka’s leadership before the apex court had delivered its final verdict.

Okorie pointed to a case in which two members of the party’s national working committee sought enforcement of the supreme court’s ruling, which they argued had been ignored by the Oye faction.

He said despite a court order preventing APGA from holding congresses or conventions pending the resolution of the dispute, Oye’s faction went ahead with a convention in Awka, Anambra state, in which Ezeonwuka was reportedly elected as national chairman.

Following this, Njoku filed a motion against Oye and INEC for contempt of court.

Okorie noted that in June 2023, a FCT high court 40, in Bwari, Abuja, ruled in Njoku’s favour, affirming his leadership.

The ruling was subsequently upheld by the court of appeal in June 2024, with INEC eventually complying with the judgment.

However, Oye and Ezeonwuka’s camp appealed to the supreme court, which is yet to deliver a final ruling on the matter.

Okorie said APGA has petitioned the National Judicial Council (NJC) over what he described as “judicial overreach”.

Okorie urged INEC to refrain from implementing the lower court’s order, emphasising that the matter is still pending before the highest court in the land.

“APGA has taken the civilized step of submitting the party’s petition to the NJC while patiently awaiting the judgment of the supreme court,” he said.