The Cyril Ogodo-led executive committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State has urged the Supreme Court to declare it the authentic party leaders.
It also urged the court and set aside the May 19 judgment of the Court of Appeal which recognised the Jones Erue-led exco as the party leaders.
An appeal before the Supreme Court by the Ogodo-led exco, through its lawyer, O.J Oghenejakpor, argued that the Court of Appeal misdirected itself in law in its consideration of the cause of action of the appellants when it held in pages 17-18 of the judgment that “it is clear that the crux of the suit at the lower court is the status of the Executive of fourth respondent (APC) at the state, local government and ward levels in Delta State”.
It also faulted the Court of Appeal for holding that the appellants abandoned their preliminary objection and thereby refused to entertain the preliminary objection properly raised, and ended up striking it out without considering it.
They said: “The positions sought to be declared as authentic, legal and valid are various levels of political party (fourth respondent and first defendant at the trial) officials in Delta State. It is not a suit in respect of the selection or nomination of a candidate of a political party for election who were to be sponsored by the fourth respondent. It is a case purely concerning members of the state executives of the fourth respondent in Delta State.
The appellants added that their claim, as disclosed from the record of appeal, was a complaint against the breach of the APC Constitution, APC guidelines for the conduct of primaries, Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, by the respondents, which has vested them with a cause of action.
They equally contended that the decision of the Court of Appeal to limit its consideration to reliefs 1-6 of the statement of claim amounted to a denial of fair hearing.
The appellants argued that the Court of Appeal took a one sided view of the case and ignored to positively look at their case and the findings of the Federal High Court made in respect of the issues placed before the trial court.
They equally argued that the Court of Appeal erred in law when it entertained the appeal of the first respondent and allowed it, even when the first respondent failed to lead any evidence at the trial court in support of the averments contained in its statement of defence.
They asked the apex court to allow the appeal in its entirety and set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal, including the order as to costs and order affirming the judgment of the trial court.
The Court of Appeal had, in a unanimous by Justices Jimi Bada, Chidi Uwa and Muhammed Shuaibu, set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court of Asaba Division, which had upheld members of the Ogodo-led exco as the authentic leaders of the APC in Delta State.
The appellate court also held that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the suit as it bordered on an intra-party dispute
It was of the view that the failure of the respondents (members of the Ogodo-led exco) to file their suit within 14 days of the issue complained of (pre-election) extinguished their rights, and proceeded to void the judgment of the High Court.
The Federal High Court in Asaba, Delta State had, in its judgment, sacked the Jones Erue-led executive and voided the participation of Great Ogboru as candidate of the APC in the 2019 governorship election in Delta State.
The judgment of the Federal High Court was on a suit by the Ogodo-led exco, in which it prayed the court to recognise it as the authentic APC executive in Delta State.
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