Prince Uche Secondus’ return as the Peoples Democratic Party chairman was on Friday cut short ahead of the party’s National Executive Council meeting fixed for this Saturday.
This came as a high court sitting in Cross River State on Friday granted an interim order restraining Secondus from resuming office as PDP chairman.
Earlier on Friday, Secondus had resumed at the party’s headquarters in Abuja after a Kebbi State High Court on Thursday reinstated him as the party’s chair.
The ruling by the Kebi court came after Secondus was suspended by a Rivers State High Court last week.
Following the latest order by the Cross River High Court presided over by Justice Edem Kooffreh, Secondus’ hope of presiding over the party’s NEC meeting this Saturday in Abuja, was shattered.
Justice Kooffreh, gave the order ruling on a motion ex parte marked HC/240/2021, and filed by a member of the party, Enang Wani, which has the PDP and Secondus as respondents.
According to the court order, Secondus must not preside over any meeting of the party until the motion is heard.
“An order of interim injunction restraining the first defendant (Secondus) from presiding over the national executive committee meeting of the 2nd Defendant scheduled to hold on Saturday, the 28th of August, 2012 or any subsequent meeting of the national executive committee of the second defendant and from presiding over any meeting of any organ of the second defendant or attending any of such meetings of functions in the capacity of national chairman of the party or in any other manner or form attempting to forcefully gain entrance into any such meetings or into the premises of the second defendant as national chairman of the party pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice,” the judge ruled.
The court equally restrained the PDP from recognising or granting Secondus the powers due to the office of the national chairman.
The court ruled, “An order of interim injunction restraining the second defendant, its members, officers and agents from recognising the first defendant as its national chairman or from according to him any of the powers, rights or privileges due to the holder of the office of the National chairman of the 2 Defendant pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.”
Kooffreh further ordered that the notice of the ruling be served to the parties by substituted means by “pasting at the entrance of the national secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at Wadata Plaza, Plot 1970, Michael Okpara Street, Wuse Zone 5, Abuja, in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria and by publication in two (2) National Newspapers in Nigeria”.