Senator Samuel Anyanwu has been instructed by the Federal High Court in Abuja to present the Supreme Court’s ruling that he claimed reinstated him as the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) within seven days.
Justice Inyang Ekwo issued this order after Chief Ken Njamanze, SAN, the lead counsel for Anyanwu, highlighted the apex court’s decision, which he argued resolved the legal conflict regarding the position of the PDP’s national secretary.
This directive came on a day when the high court was hearing a case filed by Anyanwu, seeking to halt the enforcement of concurrent rulings that had removed him from office and recognized Rt. Hon. Udeh-Okoye Ememchukwu as the legitimate National Secretary of the party.
It is important to note that the Court of Appeal in Enugu had, in a ruling delivered last December, upheld a High Court decision that dismissed Senator Anyanwu and acknowledged Rt. Hon. Udeh-Okoye as the party’s national scribe.
The court determined that Anyanwu’s continued tenure as National Secretary violated the PDP’s Constitution, as he had contested and won the party’s candidacy in the governorship election in Imo State the previous year.
In light of the judgments, both the Board of Trustees (BOT) and the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP supported Chief Udeh-Okoye.
Dissatisfied with these rulings, Anyanwu appealed to the Supreme Court and also filed a motion in the high court to suspend the enforcement of the judgments against him.
In a unanimous ruling last Friday, a five-member panel of Justices at the apex court annulled the decisions of the two lower courts due to a lack of jurisdiction.
The Supreme Court determined that the issue addressed by the lower courts pertained to the internal matters of a political party, a domain in which it asserted that no court possesses the authority to intervene.
The ruling from the apex court sparked mixed reactions, with both camps of Anyanwu and Rt. Hon. Udeh-Okoye declaring victory.
In an affidavit submitted in response to Senator Anyanwu’s claims, Rt. Hon. Udeh-Okoye, identified as the 4th defendant, informed the court that although the plaintiff was elected during the National Convention held on October 30, 2021, for a four-year term, he subsequently forfeited that position after being nominated as the party’s candidate for the 2023 gubernatorial election in Imo State.
He pointed out that Article 47(5) of the PDP Constitution mandates any officer elected to the party’s Executive Committee at any level to resign prior to contesting for any elective position. Furthermore, Article 47(6) allows for the appointment of an individual from the same area or zone to complete the term of the departing officer.
The 4th defendant explained that due to Senator Anyanwu’s refusal to vacate his position, the PDP Board of Trustees, in a letter dated October 12, 2023, alerted the National Chairman of the party, Ambassador Umar Damagun, regarding this constitutional violation.
He noted that the South East zone Executives of the party convened a meeting in Enugu on October 16, 2022, during which he was nominated to fulfill the remainder of Senator Anyanwu’s term.
Rt. Hon. Udeh-Okoye further asserted that the legal proceedings resulting in the concurrent judgments from the courts in Enugu stemmed from the aforementioned meeting where he was nominated.
Consequently, he requested the dismissal of the lawsuit.
After all parties presented their arguments on Tuesday, Justice Ekwo scheduled the matter for judgment on April 28.
