The faceoff between the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP over control of the Abia State Government House has lately been at the issue of discourse in political circles in the state and among concerned political stakeholders. At issue is the judgment of the Court of Appeal nullifying the election of Governor Okeizie Ikpeazu of the PDP as governor on the basis of alleged irregularities in three local government areas of the state. The court in its decision pronounced the APGA governorship candidate, Dr. Alex Otti as the rightful winner of the election, a judgment that has elicited strong approvals and disapprovals based on political sentiments.

Two partisans of the two men in separate interviews review the issues on ground ahead of the Supreme Court judgment that will put a seal to the agitations of the two contending camps.

Chief Victor Umeh, the immediate past national chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC and the party’s candidate in the Anambra Central Senatorial district in this interview affirms the party’s victory in the Abia State governorship election.

What is your take on the judgement of the Court of Appeal, which has offered your party a window of taking over Abia State and the way some lawyers are faulting that judgement?

I think that Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu has only one option left in law and that is proceeding to the Supreme Court to challenge the judgement of the Court of Appeal.

I don’t have any problem with him going to the apex court to challenge the judgement because it is his constitutional right.

But to begin to sponsor mayhem in Abia State because there was a judgement against him is what I consider barbaric.

Requisite spread

The judgement of the Court of Appeal would not have come to any man of justice with any surprise because the Abia governorship election was won by Dr. Alex Otti convincingly with the requisite spread across the state.

He was the most popular candidate in that election and Abia people yearned for change from what they have been experiencing in the previous administration.

So, Otti became the new face of hope for the people and that was why the major city in Abia State – Aba became a no go area for the candidates of the other parties other than Otti.

All the rural local governments were also for him. I was there during the election and Otti won everywhere except the three local governments where they decided to do the impossible – the home local government of Ikpeazu (Obingwa), where the PDP got 82, 000 votes out of 86, 000 registered voters and APGA getting only 1,000 votes.

In Osisioma, PDP got 42, 000 votes and they allocated 900 to APGA.

Returning officer

Victor Umeh

You can now see how Ikpeazu got over 120, 000 votes from just two local governments in an election that recorded about 25 per cent voters’ turnout across the local governments in the state. Such things cannot be tolerated in sane society.

You will recall that the returning officer in that election cancelled the results from the three local governments based on reports from his officials on the field. Against this scenario, Ikpeazu is still claiming that he won the election.

He lost the election and what the Court of Appeal did was to serve justice to the person who deserves it. Otti won the election and you could see that from the spontaneous eruption of excitement and jubilation in Abia State the day the Court of Appeal ruled on the matter.

So, the peoples’ mandate has been restored to the person they gave it to, but as soon as that jubilation was shown on television, Ikpeazu and his party sent money across to the local government to organize people to come and protest in Umuahia and Aba.

Their thinking is that if they don’t protest, the Supreme Court may think that the judgement was popular.

 But a number of lawyers have come out on television to argue against the judgment of the Court of Appeal?

I am so surprised when I see such things. I never believed that it is possible for lawyers to start passing judgement on a matter that is subjudice.

I saw one SAN on television talking in a manner that in a civilized society, his certificate would be withdrawn from him. Even if he is an expert in Constitutional Law, he remains a lawyer.

Delivering judgement

He cannot become a judge when he is an advocate. He is fully aware that this matter has gone to the Supreme Court but he is busy delivering judgement on behalf of the apex court.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) should sanction him because his conduct is unethical. What he should have done is to seek to consult for Ikpeazu or to represent him in court and not to come on television and start disparaging the judgement delivered by the Court of Appeal that has competent jurisdiction on the matter.

He cannot pretend not to know that he is usurping the powers of the Supreme Court by making such unguarded statements and inciting the public.