Again, Ugochinyere Wins As Court Quashes LP Suit Against Victory

The move to nullify the emergence of Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu as candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the just-concluded National Assembly elections in Ideato North and South federal constituency of Imo State by the Labour Party candidate, Paschal Obi, has suffered another defeat.

This is  as the Federal High Court sitting in Owerri, the State capital, presided over by Honourable Justice B.O. Quadric dismissed the suit and upheld the primary election venue and outcome which produced Ugochinyere.

LEADERSHIP reports that Ugochinyere eventually won the February 25 election and he is now the Member-elect for the constituency.

The judge described in the judgment that the suit was more of an academic exercise and lacking in merit as issues of party primaries are pre-election matters that have a 14-day timeframe from the date of occurrence for it to be challenged.

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He noted that the suit by Pascal Obi and Labour Party were statute barred and can’t be reopened again.

The court also went further to say that going by similar matters decided by the Supreme Court and amendments to the 1999 Constitution (as amended) that only the party that participate in the primary electio can bring an action to challenge the primary venue and another political party lacks the merit and locus standi to institute such an action which Supreme Court in numerous judgements have declared it dead on arrival once filed outside 14 days and also filed by a party that didn’t participate in the exercise.

The issue of venue of primary that produced Ikenga have been challenged by APC and LP in the past for which Ugochinyere defeated them all including the one that went to up to the Supreme Court where the apex Court affirmed his emergence as the PDP candidate for the 2023 general election.

This latest judgment by the Federal High Court Owerri has reaffirmed the well known legal principles and foundation that the Election Petition Tribunal will naturally follow in the event of another repeated challenge or litigation on same issues that the Federal High Court, Appeal Court and Supreme Court had decided as a closed case.