Supreme Court Delivers Judgement On Rivers APC, Says Party Cannot Field Candidates In 2019 Elections

Apex Court Strikes Out Rivers APC Case

An appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress to challenge the judgment of the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt barring the party from presenting candidates in Rivers State for the 2019 general elections has been struck out by the Supreme Court.

Ruling on Tuesday, the bench of the apex court, led by Justice Olabode Rhodes-Vivour struck out one of the appeals by the APC after upholding the preliminary objection filed against it by a faction of 22 members of the party loyal to Senator Magnus Abe in the state.

The 22 party members under the leadership of Ibrahim Umar, are opposed to the emergence of Tonye Cole as the governorship candidate of the party in the state.

In a unanimous ruling of the five-man bench of the apex court on the APC’s appeal on Tuesday, Justice Amir Sanusi said the preliminary objection by the respondents was meritorious.

Justice Sanusi added that the apex court’s reasons for striking out the suit would be disclosed at a date to be communicated to parties to the suit.

Naija News, however, understands that there are three other pending appeals on the controversial primaries of the party in Rivers State.

Meanwhile, the five-man bench is currently hearing three appeals which were consolidated earlier on Tuesday.