Abia gov appeals against tribunal’s judgment

Biola Azeez, Umuahia - 18.03.2008

Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State and his deputy, Mr. Chris Akomas, have filed an appeal against the election tribunal judgment that nullified their election on February 25 at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt division.

The appeal, with petition number ABS/GOV/EPT/9/2007, was filed on March 11, included 25 grounds to argue the nullification and possibly revert the judgment awarded to the PDP.

The appeal is being handled by some Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) including Chief Wole Olanipekun, Chief Nnoruka Udechukwu, Awa Kalu, Rickey Tarfa, Chief Adeniyi Akintola, Chief Solo Akuma, M.O. Adewale, among others.

Nigerian Tribune also gathered that another appeal was filed by the PPA against the PDP governorship candidate in the April 14, 2007 election, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, and that it will be heard at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt division.

Among the 25-ground appeal is that “no evidence in respect of Orji’s membership of any secret society was frontloaded by way of witness deposition to the petition under and by virtue of paragraph 1 (1) (b) of the Election Tribunal and Court Practice Direction 2007, (Practice direction).

“No copy of document or list of document was frontloaded with the petition by virtue of paragraph 1 (1) (c) of the practice direction to show that petitioners would rely on any document linking Orji with Okija secret society.

“It was only in the reply filed by Orji’s reply in the petition number ABS/GOV/EPT/09/07 that the said PDP attached a witness statement credited to the secretary of the Okija secret society in relation to Orji’s alleged membership of Okija secret society.

“Private direction does not make room for attaching a witness stateemnt to a petitioner’s reply to a respondent‘s reply.

“No reply was obtained by petitioners from the lower tribunal to bring in the secret of the Okija secret society as a witness/ and or file a witness deposition for him.”

The suit also said that the election tribunal that nullified Orji’s election did not state document which showed the governor did not resign or that he was earning salary before passing its judgment.