Late Service Stalls Hearing In Suit Against PDP’s Presidential Primary

Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on Thursday, adjourned till May 10, 2022 hearing in a suit seeking to stop the planned May 28 Presidential Primary Election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The adjournment followed complaints by the plaintiff’s counsel, Paul Erokoro (SAN), to the effect that affidavit by the PDP showing cause on why the primary should not be stopped was served on him late on Wednesday.

Although the suit was slated for hearing on Thursday, Erokoro told the court that he needed time to respond to the reasons adduced by the PDP against his client’s suit and pleaded for time by way of adjournment to enable him to put his house in order.

Counsel to PDP, Mahmud Magaji (SAN) did not object to the request for adjournment and the trial Judge, subsequently shifted the hearing to May 10 and ordered parties to file and exchange their processes ahead of the day.

A presidential aspirant and former Deputy Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Cosmas Ndukwe, had on April 28 brought an ex-parte application for an order of injunction restraining the PDP from proceeding with its scheduled primary election pending the hearing and determination of his suit challenging the position of the party on the issue of zoning the party’s presidential ticket.

Defendants in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/508/2022 are PDP, its National Chairman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, Senator Samuel Anyanwu and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as 1st to 4th respectively.

However, rather than granting the request of Ndukwe, the judge ordered that the PDP should appear before it on May 5 and show cause why the court should not accede to the plaintiff’s demand.