Court restrains Abia electoral commission from conducting LG elections

Abia State High Court, Aba Judicial Division, presided over by Agwu Umah Kalu, Tuesday, issued an interim order, restraining the Abia State Independent Election Commission (ABSIEC), from conducting the forthcoming Local Government election in the state, scheduled for December 18, 2020, pending the determination of a suit filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Abia State chapter of the APC had dragged ABSIEC to court on issues they observed were against the rights of its candidates and prayed the court to stop the electoral body from taking further actions that will limit the chances of its candidates in the election.

APC in its suit alleged that ABSIEC turned itself into a revenue generation agency, by making obnoxious monetary demands from candidates.

Upon reading the motion ex-parte filed on November 26, 2020, brought in pursuant to Order 39 Rules (1) and (3) and Order Rule of the High Court Civil Procedure, the affidavit in support of the motion and after hearing Perfect Okorie, counsel to APC, Kalu, a justice, in his ruling, ordered for an interim injunction restraining ABSIEC from taking any other step in the conducting the election, pending the determination of the motion on notice.

Benedict Godson, publicity secretary, Abia chapter of APC, in his reaction, observed that the order has proven that the days of lawlessness in Abia political landscape are over and urged ABSIEC to play according to rules.

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He explained that his party approached the court when it observed that ABSIEC was determined to extort candidates and ruin their chances of winning an election.

“Let nobody get it twisted, the All Progressives Congress, Abia State Chapter is not afraid of participating in Local Government Elections, but we cannot watch our members enter into a contest that’s already faulty from the beginning.

Things must be done in a lawful manner. If we follow the law and not bend it, Abia will be a better place. What we should rather be asking ourselves now is why are some persons trying to bend the law, if they know they’re capable of winning on a level playing ground?

“In an election already budgeted for, ABSIEC decided to turn itself into a revenue generation agency for whoever by making obnoxious monetary demands from candidates. We complained, but they thought it’s business as usual.

“How can an electoral body already funded be demanding N480,000 from all Chairmanship candidates and N145,000 from all Councillorship candidates? They think everybody is stupid and daft in Abia. What’s the money for when they’re already funded in the state’s budget?

“Aside from the dubious monetary demands, ABSIEC decided to act as a screening body for candidates. They took up the screening right of the political parties who ought to screen and send a candidate list to them as if it’s now their right to do so.

“It was obvious that the main aim of ABSIEC and whoever they are working for is to use their Kangaroo screening to disqualify some candidates they probably felt will be a problem to whoever they are secretly working for and create confusion prior to the election and unsettle the candidate and his party.

“What does APC do as a responsible political party? Do we sit down and watch them hoping that all will be well? Do we wait until they extort people and disqualify people then we start making noise that this is unacceptable? No! We decided to approach the court because that’s the right thing to do,” he said.

The court aside restraining ABSIEC from conducting the LG elections, pending the determination of the motion on notice, it equally restrained the electoral body, from demanding or continuing to demand money from chairmanship and councillorship candidates for forms, pending the determination of the motion on notice.

The court also restrained ABSIEC from excluding APC candidates from participating in the forthcoming LG on the ground of none payment of the fees it imposed or any other ground not supported by law whatsoever, pending the determination of the motion on notice.

Also, the court restrained ABSIEC from refusing and or continuing to refuse APC, the relevant forms for the election in compliance with Paragraph 7 (a) and (b) of the guidelines for the conduct of Local Government Elections.

The court scheduled, Monday, December 7, 2020, for hearing on the substantive matter.