Rivers APC National Assembly candidates protest against judge

Insist he must recuse self from PDP’s case
For refusing to recuse himself from a matter involving the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), National Assembly candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, yesterday, staged a protest against Justice Stephen Daylop-Pam of Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt.

The action of the APC candidates followed the refusal of the presiding Judge to put on record the complaints arising from the petition of defendants, which was announced by Ezemonye Ezekiel, who appeared for himself.

When the matter was mentioned in court, counsel to the PDP, Den Nweigwe, informed the court about issues of service for court process.

But when Ezekiel, the candidate for Ikwerre-Emohua Federal Constituency of APC, reminded the judge of his and other candidates’ petition against him, the judge could not take record of the information, but went ahead to adjourn till September 20, 2022, for hearing.

Addressing newsmen outside the courtroom, in presence of other candidates, Ezekiel alleged that the action of the judge has, again, proven their earlier alarm that he is on a mission to allegedly destroy their political destinies.

He explained: “I drew the attention of His Lordship to my pending petition as supported by other defendants asking him to recuse himself, but he refused to entertain it and adjourned the matter till some date in September for hearing.

“That is distasteful to me as a litigant, as well as a lawyer.”

“From day one, we had been saying that he is on a mission to destroy our political career; we have been saying that he has some interest in the matter. Every time the matter came up in court, those who are watching would see signs of what we have been saying since.

“Usually, when a judge has a petition before him to recuse himself, the petition must be attended to. This is because, like the issue of jurisdiction, it goes to the root of his jurisdictions to hear the matter. If I do not have confidence in the court to hear my matter, then there is nothing that the judge should do other than recuse himself and send back the file for reassignment.”