BY VINCENT UJUMADU
AWKA- Litigants in the various election petitions in Anambra State were taken aback, Tuesday, when they learnt that the Acting President of Court of Appeal had ordered that hearing in cases which were referred back to Anambra Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal (1) be put on hold, pending further directives.

When the case filed by the former Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Okey Udeh, who contested the House of Representatives election for Orumba North and South on the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, against Hon. Ben Nwankwo of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, was mentioned yesterday, the tribunal headed by Justice P. Onajite-Kuejubola, announced the Court of Appeal decision and the case was promptly adjourned.

It was gathered that the President of the Court of Appeal had directed that the case files be taken to Abuja and it was not clear when the files would return to Awka.

Before the reconstitution of the election petition tribunals, some cases were dismissed by the former Anambra Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal on the ground that pre-hearing notices were filed out of time.

Most of the respondents, whose petitions were so dismissed, however, appealed the judgment at the Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu, which, after examining the cases, ordered that they be returned to Awka for retrial.

Apart from the case of Okey Udeh against Ben Nwankwo, other cases affected by the decision include those of Chuma Umeoji, APGA candidate for Aguata Federal Constituency against Mrs. Eucharia Azodo and Chike Anyaonu both of PDP, as well as Chinedu Eluemuno, APGA candidate for Oyi/Ayamelum Federal Constituency against Chizor Obidigwe and Amuzie Patrick, both of PDP.

A group known as Anambra Movement for Free and Fair Election, AMFFE, described the directive to put on hold the hearing of the cases as a strategy to undermine justice.

The group stated that sinister hands were at work, declaring that they would mount pressure on the new tribunal to re-list the cases.