Justice Suleiman Belgore of an Abuja High Court sitting in Apo has stopped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from conducting any special convention to elect its national officers, pending the determination of the substantive suit brought against it by some members of the party.
The court also held that it cannot restrain Dr Bamanga Tukur from discharging his duties as the National Chairman of the PDP.
On the relief questioning the propriety or otherwise of the appointment of acting national working committee members by the party’s National Executive Committee, (NEC), at its meeting of June 20, 2013, the court refused the relief, saying the action cannot be nullified as it was not part of the prayers sought by the plaintiff in the originating summons.
Justice Belgore gave an order restraining the Jerry Gana-led Special National Convention Committee from going ahead to organize the event which has been scheduled for August 31.
Three members of the party, namely Abba Yale, Yahaya Sule, and Bashir Maidugu, filed the suit.
The court also ruled on a motion filed by Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), challenging further jurisdiction of the court when 2-18 members of the party’s NWC upon which the plaintiffs had sued the PDP have resigned their offices, the presiding judge said the court has jurisdiction to continue with the suit.
Ikpeazu had submitted that since 2-18 members of the NWC had resigned, no new relief exists in the originating summon, arguing that ” for the plaintiffs to question the propriety of persons appointed into acting capacity as national officers of the PDP amounts to a new cause of action.
“The names of affected members of the NWC have been removed from the case by the court; they have resigned their positions therefore, the case cannot be judicially determined” Ikpeazu submitted just as he prayed the court to uphold his application.
But the court held that the issue in question as argued by the plaintiffs’ counsel, Jubril Okutepa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, bordered on the legality of the action of the PDP, which he claimed where compounded following the appointment of persons in an acting capacity without conducting an election.
“This court disagrees with the submissions of counsel to the defendant that the matter is spent and amounts to an academic exercise. This case is alive and not academic, it is not spent. A suit is academic if it has no practical utilitarian value. Therefore, this court has jurisdiction to continue hearing of the suit” Justice Belgore ruled.
The court also aligned with the submissions of Okutepa that the PDP ought not to have taken action by appointing acting national officers, itself being a party in the pending suit.
Justice Belgore described the action of the PDP as an affront on the court and an effort to circumvent the course of justice as well as undermine the court, adding that the defendant cannot foist a fate accompli on the court.
“It amounts to recklessness of a high degree for the PDP to do or take action that has direct effect on a case that is before the court. The emphatic point is that the PDP is a party in the suit and subjected under the court; therefore the PDP is obliged to await for the outcome of the suit before taken action” Justice Belgore said.
Justice admitted the position of plaintiffs that the PDP’s NEC action pre-empted “the outcome of the decision in the substantive suit using as it were self-help to the prejudices of the administration of justice”.
“The step taken by the PDP would diminish the integrity of the court and the court has duty to impose disciplinary measures on a recalcitrant party who violates the rule of law and has no respect for the court, Justice Belgore said.
Justice Belgore maintained that the 3rd prayer of the plaintiff has “very strong link with questions raised in the originating summons” where they sought for an interlocutory injunction restraining the party (defendant) and all its agents including its National Chairman and any other person or group of persons acting for or on behalf of the defendant from convening or holding any meeting or convention in furtherance of the NEC decisions.
The matter was adjourned to July 29 for hearing of the application filed by Okutepa seeking to amend the summon.