Just in: Supreme Court affirms Njoku as National Chairman of APGA

Chief Edozie Njoku was confirmed by the Supreme Court on Friday to serve as the national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, or APGA.

In a unanimous ruling by a five-judge bench, the supreme court acknowledged that it had mistakenly listed Chief Victor Oye as the chairman of the party in a judgment it issued in 2021.

When such a “accidental slip or mistake” is brought to the court’s knowledge, the court has the authority to examine its decision and modify it, according to the main decision written by Judge Mohammed Lawal.

As a result, it issued an order expunging the section of the verdict that listed Oye as the national chairman of the party.

The decision came after Chief Njoku submitted a request to the court.

In an appeal he submitted via his legal team, which was managed by Mr. Chike Onyemenam, SAN, Njoku petitioned the supreme court to fix a typographical mistake in its decision that, in his view, incorrectly gave Chief Oye the party leadership.

The applicant added that the Supreme Court had invited him to file an application with it to have the abovementioned judgment regularized in a letter it sent to him on January 19 and addressed to him as the National Chairman of APGA.

Njoku requested that the court amend the lead decision it issued on October 14, 2021, in an appeal heard by Justice Mary Peter-Odili, citing Order 8 Rule 16 of the Supreme Court Rules (Rtd).

He specifically urged the top court to correct an oversight at Page 13, Lines 3 to 4 of its judgment, where instead of writing the name of “Edozie Njoku,” who was wrongfully removed from his position as the person who was duly elected as National Chairman of the APGA at the party’s convention held at Owerri in 2019, mistakenly inserted the name of Victor Oye, who was not a party to the substantive suit that gave rise to the appeal.

The supreme court allowed the application on Friday while also concluding that it had merit.

It will be noted that the Police had previously brought Njoku before a Federal Capital Territory High Court, saying that he had falsified a ruling from the supreme court.

In the accusation numbered CR/12/2022, the police informed the court that Njoku presented the allegedly faked judgment as real with the goal to deceive the public and disparage the legal system.

He was also charged with faking Judge Odili’s letterhead, who had since left the bench of the Supreme Court.

Njoku, who has petitioned the Supreme Court to clear himself, pleaded not guilty to the accusation, nonetheless.

In the meanwhile, Njoku said the ruling by the supreme court was a triumph for the party that he claimed would have performed better in the recently held general elections.

Njoku extended an olive branch to Chief Oye and encouraged Anambra State Governor Charles Soludo to quickly convene the factions for a roundtable conference to determine the party’s future course.

Miniechat

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