APC Finally Knocked-Out In Rivers As Gov Wike Assures Of Victory Ahead Of March 2, Guber Poll

BY AMOS DUNIA, ABUJA – The Supreme Court on Tuesday nailed the final coffin on the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Rivers State with a ruling that the party cannot and will not be fielding any candidate in the scheduled National Assembly, gubernatorial and State House of Assembly elections in the oil rich state.

This followed the dismissal by the apex court of the appeal filed by a faction of the Rivers state chapter of the APC on the 2019 elections.

Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour-led justices of the Supreme Court struck out one of the appeals by the APC having upheld the preliminary objection filed against it by a group of 22 members of the party loyal to Senator Magnus Abe in the state.

In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Amir Sanusi, the five man panel of justices ruled that the preliminary objection by the respondents was meritorious.

Meanwhile, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers is presumed to be in a celebration mood over his anticipatory victory in the scheduled March 2, governorship election.

This followed the stepping down of 58 gubernatorial candidates in Rivers State on Monday that gave up their ambition to support Governor Wike and Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The two development is believed to have knocked and caged the ego as well as cast a pall on the political fortune of the former governor of Rivers state, who is the present minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi.

Amaechi, who is the Director General of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s Campaign Council is believed to be facing serious issue of loyalty to the president owing to what some comments made against the president that were alluded to him.

With the final ruling of the Supreme Court and barring unforeseen circumstances, Governor Wike, will be heading for his second term in office with very little or no serious challenge.

The Supreme Court in a unanimous judgment struck out an appeal filed by a faction of the Rivers state APC challenging the judgment of a Port Harcourt High Court that barred it from conducting any primaries in the state to nominate candidates to represent the party in the forth coming election.

Counsel for the respondent, Mr. Henry Bello had told the apex court to dismiss the appeal of the APC saying that it has become a mere academic exercise in nature.

According to him; following earlier ruling by the same Supreme Court which upheld the decision of the Port Harcourt High Court which barred APC from conducting another primary election, the case of the party is clinically dead and should be buried.

Bello further told the court that the respondent led by Ibrahim Umar who were aggrieved by the violation of the Electoral Act and the 1999 constitution in the manner the APC conducted the primary election in Rivers, already secured a consent judgment at the High Court which still stands.

Justice Bode Rhodes who chaired the ruling said that reasons for the judgment will be given at a later date.