PDP Appeals Federal High Court Ruling on Edo Gubernatorial Primaries
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has filed an appeal with the Court of Appeal, Abuja division, challenging the Federal High Court’s judgment that nullified the party’s primary election which produced Asue Ighodalo as its gubernatorial candidate for the upcoming 2024 governorship election in Edo State.
In an appeal based on 25 grounds, the PDP urged the appellate court to overturn the decision delivered by Justice Inyang Ekwo on July 4, 2024.
Justice Ekwo had declared the PDP primary election, held on February 22 in Edo State, invalid due to non-compliance with the party’s constitution and electoral guidelines.
The Federal High Court ruling stated that the PDP excluded 378 elected ward delegates from participating in the primary election, a violation of Article 50(3) of the party’s constitution.
Justice Ekwo emphasized that political parties must adhere to their own constitutions, guidelines, and regulations.
“The failure to comply with the Electoral Guidelines is not different from the effect of non-compliance with the constitution of the political party or noncompliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022,” Justice Ekwo noted.
He further asserted that the decision to exclude the plaintiffs from the primaries was arbitrarily wrong and against legal requirements.
In his judgment, Justice Ekwo declared that the plaintiffs and the 378 lawfully elected ward delegates should not have been excluded from the primary election and ordered the PDP to abide by the outcomes of the ward congress held on February 4, 2024.
He also issued an injunction preventing the PDP from excluding the plaintiffs and other delegates from participating in future primaries.
The PDP’s appeal, filed on July 9, 2024, under case number CA/ABJ/CV/2024, argued that the trial court’s decision was against the weight of evidence.
Represented by their lawyer, Adeyemi Ajibade (SAN), the PDP contended that the lower court erred in granting the reliefs sought by the respondents, Kelvin Mohammed, Gabriel Okoduwa, and Ederaho Osagie, on behalf of the 378 ad-hoc delegates.
The PDP maintained that the three-man ad-hoc ward congress conducted on February 4 across the 18 local governments in Edo State did not include the 1st to 3rd respondents, who did not participate or emerge as elected delegates.
The party asserted that its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, was duly elected by the ad-hoc delegates who took part in the primary election.
The respondents in the appeal include Kelvin Mohammed, Gabriel Okoduwa, Ederaho Osagie (for themselves and on behalf of the 378 ad-hoc delegates), the Independent National Electoral Commission, the National Secretary of the PDP, and the Vice Chairman of the PDP South-South.
