The Forum of the All Progressive Congress State Chairmen has thrown its weight behind the Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi, maintaining that no section in the 1999 Constitution as amended backed the removal of the President, Vice-President or governors on the grounds of defection.
The forum said Justice Inyang Ekwo’s judgment that sacked him and his deputy, Dr Kelechi Igwe, is biased, adding that it was dissatisfied with the judgment.
The forum stated this in a statement signed by its leader, who doubles as the APC Chairman in Borno State, Ali Dalori, which was made available on Sunday.
The statement read in part, “Following the judgment delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja, on March 8, 2022, which ordered Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State and his deputy, Dr Kelechi Igwe, to vacate their respective offices on the grounds that they defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the APC in November 2021, the minds of many right thinking people in Nigeria and beyond have continued to be agitated.
“Having carefully studied and digested the court judgment on the aforementioned matter, the Forum of the APC States Chairmen in the country wishes to categorically state as follows:
“That the forum wishes to express dissatisfaction with the Federal High Court verdict because it lacks the constitutional justification. In the 1999 Constitution as amended, there is no place the issue of cross carpeting from one political party to another was stated, hence establishing something on nothing cannot exist.
“The constitution guarantees the freedom of association, belonging to or joining of any lawful assembly such as political party as provided for in Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution. For now, there’s no provision in the constitution or any extant law that says a governor’s defection from one political party to another is unlawful or unconstitutional. Therefore, the 1999 Constitution, which is a legal document, should be invoked on this matter so that the just will not suffer unduly.
“That the forum recalls the fact that once a candidate wins an election, as in this situation at hand, the governor ceases to belong to a particular political party, hence he becomes a leader to all the people occupying that geographical enclave. This is why the entire members of that society and not just his political party will always hold that individual accountable for his actions and inactions in governance.
“That the 1999 Constitution, however, stipulates the grounds under which a President, Vice-President, governor and deputy governor can vacate their seats. The provisions are on the account of resignation, impeachment and/or death. It is, however, regrettably sad that none of the constitutional provisions suffices in this present case. Does it mean that the court now has the power to make law and not to interpret the law as incorporated in the constitution? There is no lacuna concerning this issue of declaring the aforementioned seats vacant.”
The forum added, “That the law made it expressly clear that federal and state high courts are courts of coordinate or concurrent jurisdiction. Based on the foregoing, the Federal High Court does not have the locus to adjudicate on a matter earlier addressed by a high court domiciled in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, where judgment was delivered on February 28, 2022 on the same matter of defection that is valid and still subsisting.
“The Federal High Court lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate on this matter. In the eyes of the law, it is only an appellate court that has the jurisdiction to set aside the judgment of the high court delivered on February 28, 2022.
“That the forum wishes to remind the general public that the same court had earlier justified the defection of the Zamfara State Governor, Alhaji Matawalle, from the PDP to the APC, describing it as an inalienable constitutional right of the governor. Based on the foregoing, does it now imply that the same court is upturning its earlier ruling in view of the case at hand?
“In the words of Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN), who stated, ‘I am of the firm belief that the judgment, shredded of all legal and factual details, can neither stand the acid test of constitutionalism nor pass the furnace of appellate courts scrutiny. This is because the tenure of office of a governor and his deputy are constitutional matters’. Perhaps, the jurist’s learned attention was not drawn to appellate decisions on this type of matter, which under the doctrine of stare decisis and judicial precedent, he ought to have followed meticulously.
“Relying on the above assertions of a SAN and among other things, the forum wishes to join millions of people in solidarity with David Umahi and Kelechi Igwe to say that the Federal High Court judgment will not pass the furnace of appellate court’s scrutiny.”
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