Posted by By Anayo Okoli & Emma Aziken on
NATIONAL Assembly members from Anambra State are expressing discordant tunes on last weekend's Anambra State Elections Petition Tribunal judgment sacking Governor Chris Ngige from office, just as the South-East Peoples Assembly (SEPA) has vowed to drag the case through the ECOWAS Court to the World Court.
ABUJA - NATIONAL Assembly members from Anambra State are expressing discordant tunes on last weekend's Anambra State Elections Petition Tribunal judgment sacking Governor Chris Ngige from office, just as the South-East Peoples Assembly (SEPA) has vowed to drag the case through the ECOWAS Court to the World Court.
While Representative Chudi Ofodili (PDP, Awka) expressed optimism that the tribunal ruling would be reversed at the Appeal Court, two Senators from the state were not forthcoming on the development.
Senators Joy Emodi (PDP, Anambra North) and Ben Obi (PDP, Anambra Central) both of whom entered the Senate this year after affirming their respective victories at the Court of Appeal declined to speak on the issue. Senator Emodi simply said 'no comment," while Senator Obi pleaded for time to study the judgment, saying he just returned to the country Saturday evening.
However, Representative Offodili in his reaction affirmed that the judgment was of little bother, saying the Court of Appeal will reverse the tribunal decision. 'We have not lost anything. The judgment was that of a court of first instance and the judgment is going to be appealed," the lawmaker said, weekend.
SEPA vows
However, in its reaction, SEPA, speaking through its National Coordinator, Chief Elvis Agukwe, told Vanguard yesterday that the group would drag the case all the way through the ECOWAS parliament till a favourable judgment was got for Governor Ngige.
Alluding to the continued presence of Representative Jerry Ugokwe in the House of Representatives on the basis of his appeal to the ECOWAS Court after the nullification of his election by the Court of Appeal, Chief Agukwe said precedence would be exploited in the Ngige's case. 'The tribunal judgment cannot stand the test of time when put to critical screening. Even as a layman, I can read a lot of inconsistencies in the judgment. The Governor of Anambra State will certainly proceed to the Appeal Court. From there if he does not get reasonable judgment, we will urge him to proceed to ECOWAS Court. If we do not get sound judgment, we will ask the governor to proceed to the World Court," Chief Agukwe said.
'Only time will tell but I know we shall overcome. No amount of intimidation will deter the people from giving their support to the governor. He remains the liberator of Anambra State and the liberator of Igboland. Chris Ngige has had series of setbacks, this is not the first time and SEPA will stand by him and give him every support. We hereby urge the people of Anambra to remain calm and law-abiding. We shall fight the matter to its logical conclusion and history will vindicate the just," he said.
No polls in Anambra - ANPP
All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) candidate for the April 19, 2003 governorship election in Anambra State, Chief George Moghalu, yesterday reacted to the judgment of the tribunal, saying it has not changed his position that there was no election in the state. Moghalu was not particularly happy that the tribunal gave Mr.Peter Obi victory.
He said: "There was no election in Anambra State on April 19, 2003. This has been the position and nobody can fault it. What we had was gross irregularity called an election. What we had was a situation where the government in power, with the aid of security agencies, sat some people down to write the results of the election. In fact, Friday before the election, the results had been known."