The Publicity Secretary of Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC), Chris Finebone, said the Supreme Court did not set aside the party’s ward, local government and state congresses and the primaries.
He said the appeal filed at the apex court by Ibrahim Umar and 22 other supporters of Senator Magnus Abe (Rivers Southeast) – the ruling was given Monday – three issues were canvassed, one of which was that the Appeal Court did not act correctly by granting a stay of execution on the interlocutory orders of the Rivers High Court, with the apex court agreeing with them.
Finebone, in Port Harcourt, explained that the Supreme Court did not make pronouncements on the other issues, since the Rivers High Court, presided over by Justice Chinwendu Nwogu, had already given final judgment on them, an action he insisted made the present development a mere academic exercise.
He stressed that the Supreme Court only granted the appeal in parts and did not make any consequential order, which he said could only be a subject matter at the Appeal Court, when the appeal hearing of the Rivers high court judgment would begin.
“The Supreme Court today (yesterday) allowed the appellant’s appeal, which was against the stay of order of injunction of May 11, 2018. The apex court said the said order should not have been stayed. The Supreme Court made no orders, except to set aside the Court of Appeal’a order, which clears the way for hearing of the main appeal at Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt, against the judgment of the Rivers High Court. Their prayer that Supreme Court should hear the pending appeal at Court of Appeal was rejected. The appeal is to be heard and determined by the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt.
“It is important for APC faithful to ignore the raging propaganda by detractors that the Supreme Court set aside congresses and primaries of the party in Rivers State. That is a lie from the pit of hell.
“As things stand, all pending appeals at the Appeal Court are proceeding apace. Appeal and stay of the final judgment of the Rivers High Court, Port Harcourt, given on the October 10, 2018, are being perfected and hearing will commence thereafter,” Finebone said.
Rivers APC Chairman Ojukaye Flag-Amachree said: “What the Supreme Court did today (yesterday) was to set aside the stay of execution of the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt on an order given by Justice Chinwendu Nwogu, which has been overtaken by his judgment. Because after the stay of execution, Justice Nwogu has given his judgement.
“No court has set aside the order of perpetual injunction granted by Abuja High Court 14, presided over by Justice A. O. Musa, on September 4, 2018, in which it restrained the APC and its National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (1st and 2nd defendants), from tampering with the mandates of the elected officials/delegates elected at the 1st defendant’s ward, local government and state congresses in Rivers State on May 19, 20 and 21, 2018, either by nullifying, removing or in any way refusing to give effect to the outcome of the said congresses or by purporting to conduct another congress in respect of Rivers State.”
