By Onyekachi Eze
Candidate of the Reformed Advancement Party, RAP, for Imo State in the 2019 governorship elections, Barrister Kingdom Okere has been dragged to court for alleged acts targeted at distracting the State governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma.
Also joined in the suit is RAP and all persons associated with the recent court action aimed at questioning the authenticity of governor Uzodinma’s enthronement as the governor.
In a fresh law suit instituted at the Federal High Court Owerri with number FHC/OW/CS/87/2020, the plaintiffs led by Barristers; Ikechukwu Nwaopara, Felix N. Orji, and Ihunyere C. Solomon, respectively, they challenge the legal backing of the respondents following the deregistration of the party by the electoral umpire, the INEC.
It would be recalled that for the past weeks, the media has been awash with news of RAP taking the APC guber candidate and governor Hope Uzodinma to court, seeking for more interpretation of how he (Uzodinma) emerged victorious after coming out 4th in the 2019 elections.
“The fresh suit by some Imo activists, claimed that RAP is only constituting nuisance and distraction to the Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma.
The plaintiffs in their suit, are urging the court to ascertain the status and legitimacy of RAP to bring before it, a suit against
Uzodinma, since the party had been deregistered by INEC, due to its inability to meet the provisions of section 225 (a) (b) (c) of the 1999 Constitution as amended at the 2019 general election.
While RAP was among the deregistered parties, different court judgments across the country presided over by Justices Okon Abang, Taiwo Taiwo, Anwuli Chikere, Nkeonye Maha, had at separate judgments upheld the deregistration of the political parties.
Also contained in the papers filed by the plaintiffs was a ten million naira (#10,000,000) attached on RAP, its guber candidate and all parties associated in the case against Uzodinma.
In a related development, former speaker of the Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Goodluck Nanah Opiah has described the earlier suit by RAP as dead on arrival.
In a media parley with Trumpeta Newspaper last week in Owerri, Opiah stated that RAP as it stands is not a recognized political party in Nigeria coming from its deregistration by INEC.
He said by that action, they are slowing the pace of development in the State which the government come to do.
“They are only slowing down activities and development of the State which the governor is striving to fix. It is distraction to the government, but they will fail woefully”, Opiah stated.
