There is palpable anxiety in Imo State, as the people await the judgment of the Supreme Court in the matter between Governor Hope Uzodinma and the sacked governor, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.
Ihedioha of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had applied to the apex court requesting it to review its own judgment that sacked him from office.
Last week, the court delivered a similar judgement in the application filed by sacked Bayelsa State governor-elect, David Lyon and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The case, however, did not end in favour of the applicants as the court refused to reverse itself, but rather upheld its earlier judgement that installed Peoples Democratic Party (PDP’s) Douye Diri as governor.
APC and Lyon’s lawyers, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) and Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) were also fined for bringing the application before the court.
In today’s case, Ihedioha and PDP’s application, filed by Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN)-led legal team is praying the apex court to set aside its judgment as a nullity, as it was obtained by fraud in a suit of appeals Nos: SC. 1462/2019; SC/1470/2019; CA/OW/GOV/05/2019 and petition No: EPT/GOV/IM/08/2019 between Senator Hope Uzodinma of the APC and Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, the Peoples Democratic Party and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Ihedioha submitted that “the Appellants/Respondents (Uzodinma), fraudulently misled this court into holding that a total of 213,495 votes were unlawfully excluded from the votes scored by the 1st appellant/respondent in the gubernatorial election of March 9, 2019 in Imo State.
“The first appellant/Respondent admitted under cross-examination that he was the person (and not the third Respondent [INEC] or any of its officials) who computed the result that gave him the 213,495 votes alleged to have been excluded from his total votes in the election.”
However, in his objection dated February 6, 2020, Uzodinma asked the court to strike out the application by the PDP and its candidate, Ihedioha and therefore uphold its earlier judgement as a finality..