Following Thursday’s decision of the Appeal Court Abuja Division to decline jurisdiction and disqualified itself from the litigation file against Igo Aguma as Acting Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, he (Aguma) still remains Acting Chairman of the party in the state pending on the determination of the case by the Supreme Court.
Media Adviser to Aguma, Livingstone Wechie in a statement he issued on Thursday in Abuja, said members of the APC in Rivers state and the general public have been advised to discountenance the falsehood peddled by mischief makers who are misrepresenting the lofty outcomes of Thursday’s proceedings at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.
He said: “The Court of Appeal declined jurisdiction and disqualified itself entirely from the Appeal in Isaac Ogbobula v. Igo Aguma and others. It took judicial notice of an Appeal filed by the first respondent Applicant Igo Aguma against the rulings of the Appeal Court on July 8, 2020 which was brought via a motion by Emeka Etiaba SAN.
“It held that it cannot seat on Appeal on a matter that is before the Supreme Court of Nigeria. It therefore declined jurisdiction on the matter and adjourned till further notice pending the determination of the Appeal before the Supreme Court.”
Wechie also noted that the Appeal Court never gave any rulings or orders staying the Declaratory Reliefs granted by Justice George Omereji which declared Igo Aguma the Acting Chairman of APC Rivers state. He added that it could not have done so because the Court has no such powers to stay declaratory reliefs.
“The Court of Appeal could not have disqualified itself on a matter on Appeal before the Supreme Court and still go ahead to make orders on same issues. What the Court did was simply to grant a stay on the executor part of the High Court judgement and Not the Declaratory reliefs granted by the High Court. This position has been well explained to the press by Emeka Etiaba SAN at the Court of Appeal and the information is public,” he said.
He therefore, advised party faithful to remain resolute and disregard what he described as the “lies and wish-party thrown around by anyone else who now mischievously impersonates the Acting Chairman of our state chapter in any guise whatsoever.”
He said “we are used to their propaganda victory that exists only in their dreams
“Igo Aguma is still the Acting Chairman of the APC in Rivers state. We are already at the Supreme Court to seal our victory with God on our side. Justice will be exhaustively done, Wechie said in the statement.
The rulings of the Court
The Court of Appeal made up of a three judge Panel led by Justice Stephen Adah held upon the Appeal by the first respondent Igo Aguma to the Supreme Court against its rulings of 8th July 2020, the Appeal Court cannot seat over Appeals filed at the Supreme Court. It therefore declined jurisdiction on the matter.
The Court of Appeal also stayed the executory parts of the High Court judgement but did not stay the declarative reliefs of the High Court which declared Igo Aguma as Acting Chairman of APC in Rivers state…. It said it took its decisions in the interest of justice pending the determination of the Appeal before the Supreme Court.
The rulings mean that Igo Aguma is still Acting Chairman of APC in Rivers state.
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