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An Abuja High Court has ordered the Independednt National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Senator Hope Uzodinma as the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2019 governorship election in Imo state.
The court, which was presided over by Justice O. A Musa, also restrained INEC from processing or publishing the “name of any other person other than Senator Hope Uzodimma from the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the gubernatorial candidate for Imo State Governorship election for 2019” pending the determination of the substantive suit on the matter.
Uzodimma through his lawyer, Joe Agi (SAN) had approached the court seeking an order to restrain the APC from conducting a fresh or re-conducting another governorship primary in the state, and INEC from monitoring or purporting to monitor any fresh primaries or re-conducted primaries by the party pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice before the court.
In his affidavit, Uzodimma stated that he was declared the winner of the governorship primaries which were conducted on October 1, 2018, but shortly after he was declared the winner, “the National Chairman of the APC issued a press statement on the 3rd October 2018 purporting to cancel the primaries and re-conducting a fresh one.”
He pointed out that the electoral guidelines do not give the National Chairman of the APC or the National Working Committee (NWC) to interfere with the electoral process; and that out of the nine aspirants, six agreed that there was a free and fair election which he won.