Ararume: INEC Reacts As Two Courts Give Conflicting Judgments On Imo North Senatorial Seat

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it would study all court judgements before taking further action on the Imo North Senatorial election.

This is as two different courts issued contradicting orders on the same day regarding the candidate who is supposed to occupy the legislative seat.

INEC, therefore, said its legal department needs to study the court orders, make recommendations to the commission, and then the commission would make its next move public.

As earlier reported by Naija News, the Federal High Court, Abuja presided over by Justice Taiwo Taiwo, on Thursday ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue Senator Ifeanyi Ararume a certificate of return within 72 hours as the duly elected Senator representing Imo North.

However, on the same day, an Owerri High Court presided by Justice E. O. Agada, gave another order, restraining INEC from issuing Ararume with the Certificate of Return.

Reacting to the conflicting judgements, INEC has declared that it won’t take further actions on the Imo North Senatorial election for now.

This position was declared by INEC National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, in a chat with The Nation.

He said: “Based on the multiplicity of judgements and Orders in the Imo North matter the Commission will carefully study them and do the needful”.

He added that: “As at today there are over 13 cases either filed or decided by the various Courts relating to the Imo North Senatorial bye-election.

“The recent ones relate to the judgement of the Federal High Court in Abuja and the ex-parte Order from State High Court in Owerri.

“The Legal Department of the Commission will meet and present a memo to the Legal Services, Clearance and Compliance Committee of the Commission.

“The Legal Services and Clearance Committee will in turn deliberate on the matter and present a memo to the Commission.

“The Commission will deliberate on the matter, take a decision and inform the public. Hence, these judgements must of necessity pass through our processes and procedures. We are not a Court of law. We do not have adjudicatory powers.

“We give effect to judgements and orders of courts based on their tenor, context and our understanding of the judgement or orders we have been directed to give effect to”.

Meanwhile, the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kola Ologbondiyan has revealed that contrary to speculations in some quarters, the party is yet to take a final decision on zoning its 2023 presidential ticket.

Ologbondiyan in a series of tweets on Friday afternoon said the party is yet to adopt the recommendations proposed by the Senator Bala Mohammed Committee on the Review of the 2019 Elections.

He, therefore, added that it would be wrong of anyone to state that the party has chosen a zone to give its 2023 presidential ticket based on the report by the committee.