The Abia State Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2023 poll, Ikechi Emenike, and the APC, have expressed dissatisfaction with the Saturday verdict of the Court of Appeal, which upheld the election of Alex Otti of the Labour Party (LP).
Yesterday, Ikechi Emenike and the Abia APC announced their intention to seek justice by appealing the case to the Supreme Court after expressing dissatisfaction with the Court of Appeal’s decision that upheld the election of Alex Otti of the Labour Party (LP).
The Abia State APC Chairman, Kingsley Ononogbu, expressed dissatisfaction with the Court of Appeal’s decision upholding the election of Alex Otti of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 Abia State governorship poll. He referred to the outcome as a “victim of Nigeria’s judicial abracadabra” and stated that democracy and the rule of law had been compromised.
Ononogbu revealed that the APC and Ikechi Emenike’s legal team were surprised by the sudden announcement of the judgment and criticized the handling of the case. Despite the setback, he affirmed their commitment to seeking justice and announced their intention to approach the Supreme Court for a final review of what they perceive as a miscarriage of justice.
Nnamdi Adiele, a lawyer present during the judgment, accused Justice Habeeb Adewale Abiru of disregarding the law and embracing political biases. He expressed concern about the implications for Nigeria when constitutional provisions are not upheld.
Legal expert Ken Dike questioned the inconsistency in applying qualification criteria for the removal of Governors of Plateau and Kano states and the Abia Central Senator, pointing out that party waiver seemed to take precedence over constitutional and electoral laws in Otti’s case. Dike suggested that these unusual decisions should be tested at the Supreme Court.
