Court bars Obaseki, stops Edo PDP primary

A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has barred Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, from participating in Thursday’s Peoples Democratic Party governorship primary in the state.

Justice E. A Obile gave the exparte order barring Obaseki from the PDP primary in Edo while delivering a ruling in a suit by one of the party’s governorship aspirants, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, who had vowed not to step down for the governor.

The court also barred the Edo Chapter of the People’s Democratic Party from going on with its governorship primary election scheduled for Thursday, 25th June, 2020.

The aspirant had prayed the court to stop Obaseki from participating in Thursday’s primary on several grounds.

Ogbeide-Ihama had argued that Obaseki recently joined the PDP and only those who purchased the forms during the stipulated window before the waiver granted Obaseki and his deputy, Philip Shaibu, who recently defected from the All Progressives Congress, should be allowed to contest in the primaries.

The aspirant also raised questions about the validity of Obaseki’s certificates.

The court allowed the defendant to serve the parties in the suit through substituted means, in two national dailies and adjourned hearing of the summon to June 24.

While the primaries of the PDP was scheduled for June 25, the Independent National Electoral Commission had fixed the governorship election for September 19, 2020.

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