Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has been asked to stop the chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Umar Ganduje, from parading himself as the party chairman.
In a motion on notice, the plaintiff, Mohammed Saidu Etsu, prayed the court for an order restraining Ganduje from parading himself as the chairman of the party pending the determination of the originating summons.
Etsu, a former national chairmanship aspirant of the APC in the motion dated May 6, 2024, filed through his counsel, J. Obono Obla, prayed the court for an order for interlocutory injunction restraining the 1st defendant/respondent (Ganduje) from attending or presiding over the National Executive Committee (NEC) and/or National Working Committee, including carrying out the functions, powers and responsibilities and those ancillary thereto, prescribed by Article 13 of the APC Constitution, 2013 (as amended) pertaining to the office of the national chairman of the APC.
Also joined in the suit alongside Ganduje as respondents are APC, National Executive Committee of APC and the National Working Committee of APC
The plaintiff, in the originating summons is also praying the court for an order prohibiting Ganduje from presiding over the National Executive and National Working Committees meeting of the party.
In the suit marked CV/2258/CS/2024, the plaintiff asked the court to set aside the appointment of Ganduje as the chairman of the party.
He prayed the court to determine the following question: Whether by the provisions of Article 7 (vii) and (ix) of the APC Constitution (supra) the APC is not bound by the consensus reached by its leaders at the 2022 national convention held in Abuja, Nigeria, that the national chairman of the APC from 2022 to 2026 must be someone from the North Central geo-political zone of the country?
Whether it is in tandem with Article 14.2 (ii) for the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the APC on 3rd August, 2023, to appoint Ganduje, who is from the North West geo-political zone of the country to act as national chairman of the APC, after the then APC national chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu resigned his position as APC national chairman? Whether the APC national chairman can only be elected at the national convention of the APC? Convention by Article 13 (1) of the APC
Whether the national constitution is not the final authority of the APC?
He also prayed the court for the following reliefs: A declaration that by virtue of Article 7 (ix) and (x) of the Constitution of the APC, the APC is bound to promote and uphold the practice of internal democracy at all levels of the party organisation and institutionalise, maintain and foster representative democracy, discipline and strict observance of the rule of law in the federation of Nigeria
A declaration that the 3rd defendant failed, refused and or neglected to comply with the procedure laid down in Article 31.5 of the APC constitution (supra) in the replacement of Senator Abdullahi Adamu with Ganduje as national chairman of APC on August 27, 2023; an order setting aside the appointment of Ganduje by the 3rd defendant as the national chairman of the APC on August 3, 2023 on the ground that the 3rd defendant failed, refused and or neglected to comply with the procedure laid down by Article 31.5 of the APC Constitution (supra).
He also sought a declaration that the NEC of the APC has no modicum or scintilla of power to appoint Ganduje on August 3, 2023, as the national chairman of the party; an order of injunction restraining Ganduje from parading or representing or holding out himself as the national chairman of the APC in any form or guise, whatsoever; an injunction restraining or prohibiting Ganduje from presiding over NEC and the NWC, , or any other organ of the APC.
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the matter
