Anambra PDP drama: Uche Ekwunife flogged for third time

Anambra PDP drama: Uche Ekwunife flogged for third time

Friday, January 29, 2016 8:33 pm


Uche Ekwunife: flogged again

Uche Ekwunife: flogged again

Uche Ekwunife, the former senator representing Anambra was again punished by the judiciary as she was superfluously thrown out of the Senate.

Ekwunife had earlier been sacked by the Appeal Court and she had moved out of the Peoples Democratic Party to seek nomination for the senate in the All Progressives Congress. At the APC, she lost to Barrister Sharon Ikeazor

But on Friday the Supreme Court again sacked the woman that is already down and out, along with two other senators and 11 members of the House of Representatives representing Anambra.

The other senators are Andy Uba and Stella Oduah.

Stella Oduah: booted out by Apex court

Stella Oduah: booted out by Apex court

Delivering judgment, Justice Binta Ogunbiyi held that the lawmakers were illegally foisted on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by an unrecognised state executive of the party led by Chief Chukwudi Okasa.

Ogunbiyi held that the Chief Ejike Oguebego-led executive was the only constitutionally recognised leadership of the PDP to conduct the party’s primaries.

The decision prematurely terminates the tenure of the former Aviation minister Oduah in the senate. It also quashed the legislative career of Sen. Andy Uba, presidential aide to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Senator Andy Uba

Senator Andy Uba

Ogunbiyi ruled that the candidates who emerged from the primaries conducted by the Oguebego-led group were the true representatives from the state to occupy the vacant seats.

“The decision of the apex court is done to restore justice and discourage impunity in the polity. The judgment also lays out the proper procedures for selection of political parties legislative candidates,’’ she held.

Mr Chris Uba, Sen. Andy Uba younger brother and Prince John Emeka are expected to take over the seats vacated by Uba and Oduah respectively.

A bye-election would be conducted to fill the senatorial seat occupied by Sen. Uche Ekwunife, who was sacked on December 2015 by the Court of Appeal.

In December 2014, the Federal High Court had ruled that the Ejike Oguebego-led executive was the only constitutionally recognised leadership of the party in Anambra that could conduct the PDP primaries.

Despite that ruling, the parallel state executive of the PDP led by Chief Chukwudi Okasa went ahead to conduct parallel primaries.

By this judgment, the apex court reaffirmed the verdict of the Federal High Court declaring that the Oguebego-led executive had the sole right to conduct the primaries in that State.

The National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) supervised the primaries conducted by Oguebego’s executive on Dec 6 and Dec. 7, 2014 .

At the end of the exercise, the NWC of the PDP and INEC declared Chris Uba winner for Anambra South, Prince John Emeka for Anambra North, and Annie Okonkwo for Anambra Central.


Join The Conversation

What do you think?

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.