The Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has restated its order voiding the last zonal congress of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in the Southwest.
Presiding Judge, Justice Okon Abang also put the Inspector General of Police (IGP) on notice to ensure that punitive measures are to be brought against anyone found to be in breach of the order.
He was presiding over a suit brought against the national leadership of the PDP by the Dayo Soremi faction of the party in Ogun State.
In the order granted on the 27th of April, the court set aside the list of delegates sent to the party’s headquarters by the Ogun State chapter and the nullification of the nomination of Tunji Akinosi, Segun Sowunmi and Pegba Otemolu as delegates of the State.
It also gave an interim injunction restraining the PDP by its national organs; the National Working Committee, National Executive Committee, its Southwest Zonal organs and their officials from taking any disciplinary action against the men in respect of purported queries issued on the Chairman of the party’s harmonized Executive in the state, Chief Dayo Soremi and others, pending the determination of the substantive suit.
At the resumed sitting of the court on Friday, Justice Abang, granted an oral application by the respondents, except Oladipo, for a stay of further proceedings pending the determination of a similar application before the appeal court.
Despite stiff opposition from the lawyer to the plaintiffs, Ajibola Oluyede, Justice Abang held that though the court ought to promptly decide a contempt proceeding initiated against the party’s national leaders by the applicants, he noted that the court could not afford to proceed in view of the fact that the respondents have compiled the record of appeal and provided evidence to that effect.
The judge then ordered the applicants to apply to the Appeal Court for a prompt hearing of their motion for committal proceedings against some leaders of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Chief Olagunsoye Oyinlola, Bode Mustapha, Segun Oni and Olisa Metuh who all allegedly flouted an earlier court order
