Supreme court seals fate of APC in Rivers State

ABUJA, Nigeria – The Supreme court today for a second time in 4 months sealed the hope of the All Progressive Congress(APC) in Rivers State, when it upheld the decision of the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court in Rivers State which had earlier dismissed appeal filed by the Rivers State’s All Progressives Congress’ chairman, Flag Amachree, challenging the judgements which annulled all the primaries held by APC in Rivers State.

But today, a five-man panel of Judges of the Supreme Court upheld the nullification of all primaries of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State.

Earlier in January 7, 2019, a Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt nullified the primaries conducted by the two factions of the APC in Rivers State. In the judgment, the court also restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from presenting Tonye Cole, Magnus Abe and any other candidates of the APC for the 2019 governorship election in the state.

Tonye Cole, the governorship candidate of the Rotimi Amaechi’s faction appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.At the hearing today presided over by Justice Mohammed Dattijo, the Supreme Court dismissed the suit, and upheld the judgment of the Federal High Court.

This is the second time the Supreme Court is rulling on the congresses held by the APC in Rivers State and on each occasion dashed hope of the ruling APC in River State. In the October 22, 2018 judgement by the Supreme Court, Justice Centus Chima Nweze, in a judgment in an appeal filed by one Abdullahi Umar, held that the Court of Appeal ought not to have vacated the injunction issued against the APC by the Rivers State High Court prohibiting the conduct of congresses in the state and that the party cannot be a beneficiary of its own stupidity.

2019 GOVERNORSHIP: SUPREME COURT SEALS APC’S HOPE IN RIVERS