From Maurice Okafor, Enugu
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) senatorial candidate for Enugu West Senatorial District, Barr. Ogochukwu Onyema, popularly known as Sir OAU Onyema, has expressed optimism that the Abuja Federal High Court judgment sacking Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, himself and 470 other ADC candidates produced by the Senator David Mark-led leadership of the party will not stand.
Speaking with newsmen in Enugu, Sir OAU Onyema, a practising lawyer, said the court order remained extant until it was set aside. He disclosed that he was aware that the ADC had filed a Notice of Appeal, upon which it based its Motion on Notice for Stay of Execution of the judgment.
He stated, “This means that status quo will be maintained and nothing will be tampered with, based on the judgment, until the appeal is heard and determined. Hence, the ADC under Sen. David Mark will continue to carry on its affairs as if nothing happened, until the said Motion is heard and declined, or the appeal is heard and the judgment set aside”.
It would be recalled that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday, November 5, ruled in a suit instituted by the National Deputy Chairman of the ADC, Nafiu Bala Gombe, that the process through which the Senator David Mark-led executive of the party emerged was unlawful.
However, Sir OAU Onyema, a senior lawyer at Akpaagu Chambers, located on Presidential Road, Enugu, said the Abuja Federal High Court judgment would not stand the test of time, insisting that Nafiu Bala had duly resigned from his position as National Deputy Chairman of the ADC.
Sir OAU Onyema said, “I am privileged to know that the said Nafiu Bala duly resigned his position, as I have sighted his letter of resignation.
“One then believes that the judgment is not likely to stand the test of time”.
He said he was not perturbed by the judgment and had continued his grassroots campaigns across Enugu West Senatorial District.
His words: “This is why I, as a SENATORIAL CANDIDATE of ADC in Enugu West Senatorial Zone, am not perturbed, as I have seen that our judiciary has risen to occasions, and will not fail to dispense justice in the court of law.
“I am optimistic that the appellate court will rightly fault that judgment; and straighten things”.
He alleged that the judgment was masterminded by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), expressing disappointment over what he described as a compromise within the judiciary.
He stated further: “The only thing the ruling party has achieved with this judgment is the demoralization of some persons that hitherto are routing to support our party ADC.
“However, am personally disappointed at the technical games the ruling party has turned our Judiciary into.
“All manner of allegations and counter-allegations are now being deployed in various courts so as to stall the opposition from contesting election.
“It is not encouraging in democracy; and it is a lazy man’s approach to issues.
“Rather than canvassing for Votes and emerging meritorious, the ruling party has shunned same, and are doing one machination or the other in courts, to frustrate their opposition.
“It has never happened in Nigeria; and it is a very bad teaching to our system.
“This is not healthy for our democracy, and it is impacting the wrong teachings into our young ones.
“It is a crooked behavior that we should detest”, Sir Onyema cautioned.
