INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu Risk Jail As APGA Crisis Deepens

The faction of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)-led by Edozie Njoku, has filed committal charges against the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commis­sion (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, and APGA chairman, Victor Oye for violating a valid order of court.

Truetells Nigeria reports that the committal charges were filed before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting in Bwari.

The committal proceeding (Form 49) was drawn from a motion on notice marked FCT/ HC/CV/4068/2023, filed against Victor Ike Oye and the INEC by Camaru La­teef Ogidan (the factional National Vice Chairman, South West geo­political zone of APGA) and Alhaji Rabiu Mustapha (the factional National Welfare Officer of APGA), two APGA National Working Committee (NWC) members under the leadership of Edozie Njoku.

Specifically, the Form 49, dat­ed June 2, 2023, which has been served on INEC and Oye, or­dered them to appear in court to show cause why an order of committal to prison should not be made against them, having disobeyed a restraining order of the court made on May 10, 2023.

Justice Mohammed Mad­ugu of the FCT High Court, Bwari, had on May 10, or­dered that the parties in the suit should maintain status quo ante bellum pending the hearing of the notice of pre­liminary objection filed on May 9, 2023, by the 1st defen­dant/applicant.

“For the avoidance of doubt and for the purpose of clarity, parties herein, whether by themselves, agents, privies, assigns, authorized represen­tatives or whosoever acting on their behalf are restrained from holding the planned con­gresses, national convention or any other meetings or gather­ings in whatever name called of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) pending the hearing of notice of prelimi­nary objection filed on May 9, 2023, by the 1st defendant/appli­cant”, Justice Madugu ordered.

Despite the valid order of the court, Chief Oye went ahead and conducted series of political meetings, which culmi­nated into the congresses and national convention of APGA held on May 31.

The two claimants, Lateef Ogidan and Rabiu Mustapha are executives of APGA under the leadership of the Njoku faction.

A statement by Ben Okoro, National Administrative Sec­retary, APGA, stated that “Ap­propriately, the Supreme Court served the enrolment order of its judgment on INEC on April 5, 2023.

“However, despite being in reception of the Supreme Court enrolment order, the commission (which has con­tinued to conduct itself poor­ly, especially since the APGA leadership crisis) refused to recognize Chief Edozie Njoku as the authentic national chair­man of APGA as contained in the consequential orders of the court.

“Since April 5, 2023, INEC, under the leadership of Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, by an act of omission and commission, has shown the world that it has enormous powers; this includes powers to suppress a Supreme Court judgment and appoint a national chairman for any political party, as it so wishes.

“It is befuddling that a com­mission which was created by law and funded by taxpayers’ money would be leading a subversive crusade against the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Okoro stated.