Anambra poll: Court clears Soludo as APGA’s candidate

The Court of Appeal, Awka Division, Anambra State, last Monday struck out an application challenging the judgement of the state High Court recognising Professor Chukwuma Soludo as the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the forthcoming governorship election in the state. The high court in Awka presided by Justice Charles Okaa had two weeks ago ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enlist Soludo’s name as APGA governorship candidate. The party governorship candidate from another faction, Chief Edozie Njoku, along with one Okoro Benedict had approached the appellate court to challenge the order. The plaintiffs had sought from the appellate court presided by Justice Nwosu-Iheme three reliefs against the judgement of Justice Okaa which affirmed Soludo as the authentic candidate of APGA in the state governorship election. They had sought the following reliefs to wit: order of the appellate court staying execution of Justice Okaa’s court judgement; order of the appellate court to set aside court rules and grant the appellants (Njoku and Okoro) permission to compile and transmit judgement of Justice Okaa to the Court of Appeal, and to make an order granting their application an accelerated hearing. But Justice Nwosu-Iheme in her ruling in the consolidated motions last Monday, dismissed the applications as incompetent, and awarded the sum of N200,000 and, N250,000 respectively against the applicants who listed Hon Wilson Onyekwelu, APGA, and others as respondents. (THISDAY)