ABIA: Civil Society Groups Call For Justice

Ikpeazu and Ogah

By Ugochukwu Alaribe


As the Appeal Court, Abuja Division, hears the suits arising from the tussle over the Abia state governorship position, groups under the aegis of Coalition of Civil Society Groups for Transparency and Good Governance, CCSGTGG, has urged the Judges of the court to thoroughly scrutinize the facts of the matter and serve justice.

 In a statement by the Coalition’s National Coordinator, Comrade Ali Abacha and National Publicity Secretary, Mazi Chidi Nwafor, entitled, "Abia State Governorship Legal Tussle, The True Position", it insisted that from their investigations on the matter, Justice Okon Abang erred in declaring Dr. Uche Ogah as the governor of the state without considering the circumstances trailing his suit, including when Ogah defied his party’s resolution in zoning the governorship seat to Abia South and rejected the result of the PDP primary election, alleging that authentic party delegates were locked out of the venue. He said: “Our attention has been drawn to the political macabre dance taking place in Abia State since the 27th June, 2016 when Justice Okon Abang sacked the current Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu and declared Dr. Uche Ogah as the Governor of Abia State. "We are not quarrelling with the sacking of Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, but what we cannot really understand is how Justice Okon Abang arrived at declaring Uche Ogah as the Governor of Abia State in the circumstances of the case before him and facts available to us.

"It is also part of our findings that Sir Friday Nwosu presented oath evidence before Justice Okon Abang that he sued Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu first in his said suit numbers while Dr. Uche Ogah’s suit first started as FHC/UM/CS/94/2015, Nwosu’s suit transferred to Umuahia was FHC/UM/ CS/64/2015, about 6 weeks earlier than Ogah’s suit. "We also found out that Ogah refused to comply with an order of the Federal High Court,Umuahia, then presided over by Justice F. A. Olubanjo as to when to amend, file and serve his originating summons but he did not do so even upon challenge by Sir Nwosu; yet he was declared governor of Abia by Justice Abang.” The Civil society groups urged the Justices of the Appeal Court to thoroughly scrutinize the case as it is and declare the truth in the circumstances.


~Vanguard