From Yemi Oyeyemi, Abuja.
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Barrister Kalu Agu Kalu on Friday asked a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for an order of perpetual injunction restraining the APC from going ahead with its planned Ward congress scheduled for Saturday July 31 as well as subsequent Local Government, State, Zonal Congresses and the party’s National Convention.
Agu in the suit marked CV/1812/2021, dated July 29 and filed July 30, 2021 is also asking the court to declare as null and void any of the APC’s Congresses and convention held under the current acting National Chairman of the APC’s Caretaker Committee, Mai Mala Buni.
The suit filed by his lawyer, Ukpai Ukairo, has the APC and Mai Mala Buni as first and second defendants respectively.
The plaintiff by the suit is claiming that the second defendant was never elected at any congress to run the affairs of the APC and that the party’s Constitution does not allow any person who holds an executive position to occupy any position in any of its organs.
In a -38 paragraph affidavit deposed to in support of the suit, the plaintiff, stated that Buni “Is being sued solely in his capacity as henchman of the usurpers of the functions of the organs and elected officers of the first defendant and as representing the other usurpers of the functions of the organs and elected officers of the first defendant”.
Agu, who disclosed that he intends to contest for the position of National Legal Adviser of the APC during the party’s next convention said his interest would “be affected by a coñduct of a congress superintended by Buni who is a sitting Governor of Yobe State and also discharging the functions of the elected National Chairman and the National Working Committee of the first defendant”.
While claiming that APC does not have an elected ward congress and that Buni is not also elected, the deponent added that” some persons not known to the ware are determined to come together and appoint themselves as ward executive committee thereby excluding him from the process of contesting for the said position.
Among the issues he wants the court to determine are; whether the APC can conduct a ward congress when there is no elected ward executive committee of the APC.
He further wants the court to determine whether the APC can lawfully conduct a ward congress, local government congress, state congress, zonal congress, national convention for the election of officers into the various levels of the structure of the APC established by the constitution of the APC for its administration when it has usurpers of the functions of the organs and elected officers of the APC who are not elected in accordance with the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act and the APC’s Constitution.
He argued that if the answers to the questions are in the negative whether the defendants can be restrained by the court from proceeding with the process of electing any officer of the APC or whether the court can set aside any decision, action, steps or notification taken by the APC for the actualization of the ward, Local Government, State and Zonal Congresses and National Convention for the election of officers of the APC.
While he wants the court to declare, “that the Ward Congress fixed by the Defendants to hold on Saturday, the 31st day of July, 2021, the subsequent Local Government Congress, State Congress, Zonal Congress and National Convention for the purposes of electing ward, Local Government, State, Zonal and National Executive Committee Members of the first Defendant are null and invalid arising from one or a combination of the above:
(1)By the Constitution of the 1st Defendant only a Ward Executive Committee can summon a Ward Congress and presently, the 1st Defendant has no Ward Executive Committee in any of the Wards across Nigeria,
(2) The 1st Defendant ia presently being administered by an unelected USURPERS in which the 2nd Defendant is their henchman.
(3) The 2nd Defendant is the Governor of Yobe State and by Section 183 of the 1999 Constitution cannot hold an Executive position in addition to the position of Executive Chairman of any other body.
He sought AN ORDER of mandatory injunction setting aside any decision, act, steps, notifications taken or made out for the purpose of holding any ward, Local Government, State, Zonal Congresses or National Convention of the 18 Defendant directed at the election of officers of the 1s! Defendant at any level of the political structure in Nigeria created by the Constitution of the 1st Defendant.
No date however has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.