The Court of Appeal, sitting in Lagos, on Wednesday, unanimously affirmed the election of the member representing Ideato North and South Federal Constituency of Imo State, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu, as the validly elected member of the House of Representatives.
CKNNews reports that litigation concerning election into the National Assembly terminates at the Court of Appeal.
In a unanimous judgment, the panel headed by Justice Abubakar Babandi Gumel overruled the judgment of the Imo State National/State Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, which had disqualified Ikenga and nullified his election on a pre-election matter of the primary election of the PDP despite plethora of authorities by the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal to the effect that Election Tribunals do not have jurisdiction over pre-election matters.
Speaking after the judgment, counsel to Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, Emeka Ozoani, SAN, described the judgement as victory for democracy and an end to political rascality.
He said the travesty of the tribunal judgement led to the filing of nine appeals before the Appeal Court, the highest number of appeals ever against a singular judgement in the nation’s election petition jurisprudence.
While commending the President of the Court of Appeal and the three members of the Panel, Barr Tochukwu Ohazuruike, said: “The President of the Court of Appeal and the three Panel members deserve all the commendation for resisting the attempts of Hope Uzodimma to undermine them like he did to Justice Akpovi who has lost all his respect for such strange judgment he delivered after the Tribunal hearing. It is only those who that Hope Uzodimma stops at nothing when he wants to desecrate the judiciary that will understand why this commendation is necessary and apt.”
In his own reaction, Hon. Ugochinyere said God always vindicates the innocent.
He said this was not the opportunity cost for those that were killed in the battle, but it will, at least, show they did not die in vain.