February 02, (THEWILL) – A Federal Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri has stayed the execution of an earlier judgment ordering the conduct of fresh primaries by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency of Imo State.
The development comes barely three weeks before the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections.
In January, a Federal High Court had sacked Albert Agulanna, who emerged as the PDP House of Representatives candidate for Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency.
The lower court also ordered that a fresh primary be held in the Federal Constituency within 14 days of the judgment.
However, following an appeal filed by Dr Uzoma Ugochukwu, the appellate court has restrained the PDP from conducting the fresh primaries.
The court, in a judgement delivered by a 3-man panel led by Justice Rita Pemu, held that the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should not conduct any fresh primaries pending the outcome of the appeal at the Supreme Court.
“Accordingly, it is hereby ordered as follows: That the Order of this Honourable court made on the 20th of January, 2023, ordering a fresh primary election for Aboh-Mbaise/Ngor-Okpala Federal Constituency of Imo State pending the hearing and final determination of the Applicants appeal before the Supreme Court on the Propriety of the said order of fresh primary be and is hereby stayed.
“Consequently, by this Order, the 1st and 2nd Respondents are hereby restrained from enforcing in any way whatsoever the judgment of this Court delivered on 20th of January, 2023 by way of conducting a fresh primary election for the Aboh- Mbaise/Ngor-Okpala Federal Constituency”, the court declared.
