Get Guardian on GoogleChief of Staff to the Imo State Governor, Enyinnaya Onuegbu, has defended Governor Hope Uzodimma’s legal standing in the contentious All Progressives Congress (APC) primary for the Imo West Senatorial District, declaring the court judgment favouring former Governor Rochas Okorocha as a “miscarriage of justice”.
Speaking yesterday on Channels Television’s ‘Politics Today’, Onuegbu addressed the spiralling political and legal tussle between Uzodimma and his predecessor, Okorocha, over the party’s senatorial candidacy.
Responding to claims that Uzodimma would not appear on the ballot following recent court rulings, Onuegbu asserted that the electoral law “safeguards a candidate” whose name had been submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)pending the exhaustion of all legal appeals.
“The judgment referred to is the judgment of the court of first instance. It hasn’t ended,” Onuegbu stated, revealing that the governor’s legal team filed an appeal within 48 hours of the judgment.
“The Electoral Act says if you are a candidate and there is a dispute about your candidacy, if your name is submitted to INEC, your name remains in the INEC process until the final determination by the highest court.”
Onuegbu dismissed arguments questioning the eligibility of a sitting governor to run for a legislative seat, noting that the 1999 Constitution does not bar executive officeholders from seeking elective positions.
“There is no law precluding a sitting governor from looking for an opportunity to go to the Senate,” Onuegbu explained, pointing out that if successful, Uzodimma would step down from his governorship position prior to being inaugurated into the Senate.
“That argument is pedestrian and made out of ignorance,” he added.
Addressing Okorocha’s allegations that Uzodimma initiated petitions leading to police harassment against him, Onuegbu rejected the accusations, clarifying that the petitions and law enforcement actions originated from the APC national leadership and statutory bodies.
“Governor Uzodimma did not originate any petition that led to the police looking for Okorocha,” Onuegbu said.
He explained that the police obtained a warrant of arrest from a magistrate court in Abuja after Okorocha repeatedly declined invitations regarding alleged irregularities and fake primary documentation.
When pressed on the evidence supporting Uzodimma’s victory in the APC direct primary held on May 18, Onuegbu cited official primary returns, committee reports, and formal notifications sent by the party to INEC.
He dismissed claims regarding single-signature documentation and typographical date errors in court filings, describing them as minor technical details that do not alter the outcome of the party’s direct primary process.
“When a court is looking for substantial justice, it doesn’t capitalise on typographical errors. Everyone agrees the primary took place on May 18,” Onuegbu emphasised.
He reaffirmed the governor’s commitment to the APC and expressed confidence that the Court of Appeal would overturn the lower court’s decision upon examining the material facts of the primary process.
