By Felix Ekwu
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is currently at the Appeal Court in the Abuja Judicial Division to challenge Thursday, July 7, 2022, judgement of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which declared Sheriff Oborevwori not qualified to be the party’s governorship flag bearer in the 2023 general elections on the grounds of discrepancies in his documents submitted to the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC.
Recall that the presiding judge of the Federal High Court, Abuja, Justice Taiwo O. Taiwo in the judgment of July 7, 2022, ordered PDP and INEC to replace Oborevwori’s name with Olorogun David Edevbie, who came second in the party’s governorship primary held on Wednesday, May 25, 2022.
The PDP in Delta State had the same day in a statement by the state Publicity Secretary, Dr Ifeanyi Osuoza, said it hopes that the disqualification of its governorship candidate will be upturned on Appeal.
The PDP appeal with SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS795/2022 and dated July 19, 2022, has David Edevbie, Oborevwori Sheriff Francis Orohwedor and the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) as first, second and third respondents respectively.
The Notice of Appeal reads in parts, “TAKE NOTICE that the APPELLANT being dissatisfied with the decision of the Federal High Court, sitting at Abuja contained in the Judgment of Honourable Justice Taiwo Taiwo delivered on the 7th day of July 2022 in SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/795/2022 between David Edevbie v OBOREVWORI SHERIFF FRANCIS OROHWEDOR & 2 ors, doth hereby appeal to the Court of Appeal, Abuja upon the grounds set out in paragraph 3 and will at the hearing of the appeal seek the reliefs as set out in paragraph 4 AND the APPELLANT further states that the names and addresses of the persons directly affected by the appeal are set out in paragraph 5.”
The PDP is appealing the Federal High Court judgement on the following three grounds:
1. The learned Trial judge erred in law and thereby occasioned a miscarriage of justice when he assumed jurisdiction to entertain the suit.
2. The Learned Trial judge erred in law when he shifted the burden of proof to the 2nd Respondent and stated that the 2nd Respondent should have called the issuing authorities to authenticate the certificates he submitted to his political party for nomination.
3. The Learned Trial judge erred in law when he held that the suit was properly commenced by way of originating summons.
The party is therefore seeking the following reliefs, “An order allowing the appeal, dismissing the 1st Respondent’s amended originating summons and setting aside the judgment of the lower Court delivered on the 7th day of July, 2022 in SUIT NO: FHC/ABJ/CS/795/2022 between David Edevbie v OBOREVWORI SHERIFF FRANCIS OROHWEDOR & 2 ors.”
