Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
Rivers State Elders and stakeholders have vowed to appeal the State High Court judgement presided over by Justice Chiwendu Nworgu that struck out a suit challenging the legality of President Bola Tinubu‘s intervention to resolve the political crisis in Rivers state.
Speaking on behalf of the 10 Elders who instituted the case and former Spokesman for Pan Niger Delta Forum,PANDEF,Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe said they were not satisfied with judgement and Court did not them roof to explore the means of substituted service to the Defendants who they claim had been evading service of Court process before the case was struck claiming the lack of jurisdiction to hear the case.
Chief Igbe wondered why the Learnered Justice Chiwendu Nworgu could be citing a Federal Court judgement in Abuja when the only came to Court to file a motion Experte for the Court to allow them serve the some of the Defendants substituted service but unfortunately,the case was struck out.
The suit was filed by a group of 10 persons who claimed to be representatives of sons and daughters of the state led by a former spokesman of Pan Niger Delta Forum PANDEF,Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe against, President Tinubu, the Rivers State Governor, Sir. Siminalayi Fubara; the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Martin Amaewhule, Rivers State House of Assembly, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Among other issues, they were asking the Court to declare as illegal peace accord that states that Governor Fubara should represent the 2024 budget already signed into law to the Martin Amaewhule-led Lawmakers and reinstate the Nine Pro-Wike returnee Commissioners.
The Claimants also were seeking to declare that Martin Amaewhule-led Lawmakers were no longer Rivers State Lawmakers from the day they decamped from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to the All Progressives Congress APC.
The Claimants had approached the court to challenge President Tinubu’s 8-point peace resolution of political rift between the Nyesom Wike Minister of Federal Capital Territory and Governor Fubara Rivers State.
However, citing the judgement of Justice James Omotosho of Federal High Court,Abuja,on Monday January 22,which nullified the activities of the Edison Ehie-led faction loyal to Governor Fubara of the Assembly,Justice Nworgu declined jurisdiction to entertain the suit and struck out the case.
Our Correspondent reports that the Justice Chiwendu Nworgu is the second judgement against the pro- Governor within two days.