A Federal High Court sitting in Benin-city, Edo
State, on Tuesday, reserved legal arguments on an exparte motion seeking to
prevent the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress
and the party's National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, from using direct
primaries to elect the state governorship candidate of the party till next week
Monday.
Joined in the suit is the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC).
Factional state Deputy Chairman of the party,
Pastor Kenneth Asemokhai, and a governorship aspirant of the party, Matthew
Iduoriyekemwen, who approached the court, are seeking to restrain the APC from
adopting the direct mode of primaries, citing the COVID-19 and the 2018 APC NEC
resolution as the ground for their action.
According to the plaintiffs, who were represented
by John Odubela (SAN), APC constitution provides that the states should suggest
mode of primaries to the NWC, and that they have suggested indirect primaries
in which 4,000 delegates would participate with 500 delegates representing each
ward.
An argument, however, ensued when defendants’
lawyers led by H. O Ogbodu (SAN) appeared in the matter and demanded to be
served the motion papers.
Consequently, the presiding Judge, Justice M.D
Umar, declined to grant the exparte motion, instead, gave the defendants three
days to file their papers to show cause why the injunction should not be
granted, and adjourned the case till next week Monday.
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