Federal High Court Chief Judge Transfers Rivers Legislators’ Defection Case
Following the transfer of the suits challenging the defection of 25 legislators of the Rivers State House of Assembly by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice John Tsoho, there now exit palpable suspicion and tension in the Oil rich state which may further escalate the political crisis.
Justice Tsoho, based on reports, is believed to have transferred the cases of the 25 state lawmakers in Rivers State who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) from Federal High Court 4, Port Harcourt, presided over by Justice Steven Dalyop Pam, to Court 2, headed by Justice E. O. Obele.
It was gathered that the directive transferring the cases followed a petition by Hon. Martins Amaewhule, a defendant in the case, who requested that the cases against him be transferred to another court.
The cases involved a suit filed by the BOOT Party and civil society organisations in the state, challenging the defection of Amaewhule and others to the APC.
The court which resumed hearing on last Monday was confronted with Amaewhule’s petition addressed to the Chief Judge, seeking the case’s reassignment which was read in the open court by Justice Pam, in which he said that Amaewhule also prayed for the Chief Judge to stop the hearing process.
The development has made concerned parties in the matters to go back to the drawing board to restrategise ahead of the implementation of the latest directive.