Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo was on Monday reinstated as the authentic candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), for Anambra governorship.
His reinstatement followed a judgement delivered by a
Federal High Court sitting in Awka, the Anambra State capital.
Last week, the Independent National Electoral Commission released a list of Anambra governorship candidates in which the former governor of Nigeria’s Central Bank’s name was declined.
Soludo is backed by Governor Willie Obiano to succeed him as he ends his second tenure at the end of this year, but APGA which is the ruling party in Anambra has been locked in crisis.
The Victor Oye-led faction of APGA had secured 740 votes to defeat Ezenwankwo Christopher, who polled 41 votes, while ThankGod Ibe had four votes, and Okolo Chibuzor got seven votes.
Surprisingly, Mr. Michael Umeoji’s name was published by the Independent National Electoral Commission in placement of Soludo as the standard-bearer, a development that generated legal issues.
INEC said it based its decision on a court orders.
Festus Okoye, INEC’s commissioner for Information and Voter education, revealed that Musa Ubale, judge of a high court in Jigawa State, had passed judgment in suit JDU/022/21, upholding the suspension of Victor Oye and affirming Jude Okeke as the party’s national chairman on June 30, 2021.
Following the development, Chukwudi Okaa, presiding judge, while delivering judgment on the case on Monday held the other parties in the suit, comprising Jude Okeke, Edozie Njoku, and Chukwuma Umeoji, were “meddlesome interlopers”.
The judge, therefore, affirmed Oye as the national chairman of the party, and ordered INEC to recognise Soludo as the APGA governorship candidate for Anambra.
