The Supreme Court has upheld an appeal by the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), affirming Sylvester Ezeokenwa as its National Chairman.
Delivering its judgment on Wednesday, the court imposed a fine of ₦20 million against Edozie Njoku for filing a frivolous suit at the FCT High Court, Bwari.
This ruling comes days after the Federal High Court in Abuja restrained Njoku from parading himself as APGA’s National Chairman. Justice James Omotosho, in his verdict, stated there was no valid judgment or order, including any from the Supreme Court, that recognized Njoku as the party’s leader.
The case, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/966/2024, was initiated by APGA and Ezeokenwa following the removal of Ezeokenwa and his executive officers’ names from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) website. INEC had replaced the names with those of the Njoku-led faction on July 9, prompting the lawsuit.
Justice Omotosho criticized INEC’s action, asserting it lacked legal justification. “There is no subsisting court order upon which it acted. The Supreme Court decision was explicit about who the National Chairman should be, and it is certainly not Chief Edozie Njoku,” he ruled.
The judge highlighted that Chief Victor Oye was lawfully recognized until his tenure expired in May 2023, following which a national convention in Awka elected Ezeokenwa as the new National Chairman. INEC monitored the convention and issued a report affirming the election.
Omotosho further referenced a Supreme Court decision from March 24, 2023, which upheld the judgment of the Court of Appeal. That judgment set aside a High Court ruling in Jigawa and stated that determining the party’s acting National Chairman fell within its internal affairs and was not subject to judicial review.
“There is clearly no Supreme Court order recognizing Chief Edozie Njoku as Chairman of the party. It is puzzling how INEC claimed to act on a purported court order,” the judge added.
The court ordered INEC to restore Ezeokenwa and his executive team as the rightful National Executive Officers of APGA.
