State High Court to Hear PDP Congress Challenge on January 15, 2025
A State High Court, under the stewardship of Justice Stephen Jumbo, is set to hear arguments on an interlocutory injunction filed by two legal practitioners, Edwin Woko and Love Otuonye, alongside two members of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). The hearing is scheduled for January 15, 2025.
The applicants are seeking to annul the PDP congresses that were purportedly held in Rivers State on July 27, August 10, and August 31. They argue that these congresses were conducted in direct violation of a High Court order issued on July 16, 2024, which prohibited the PDP, its National Chairman, the Independent National Electoral Commission, and their agents from holding any congresses pending the resolution of an originating summons currently before the court.
Additionally, Woko, Otuonye, and their co-applicants are requesting a court order to restrain Aaron Chukwuemeka and nine other individuals—identified as the second set of defendants—from acting as representatives or members of the state executive committee of the PDP.
During a recent court session, Justice Jumbo adjourned the proceedings after acknowledging the absence of the claimants’ lawyer, with a new date set for January 15, 2025, to continue discussions regarding the interlocutory injunction. Judiciary correspondents report that the outcome of this case could have significant implications for the leadership structure of the PDP in Rivers State.