You Can Now Campaign For Me, LP Candidate Tells Imo People
By Nsikak Effing
Ahead of the November 11 Gubernatorial election in Imo State, the Labour Party (LP) Senator Athan Nneji Achonu has called on the people to work for him.
Speaking to journalists, Achonu who was reacting to a Supreme Court judgement affirming his candidacy of the Labour Party and the leadership of the party led by Barr Julius Abure, said even though the court case which was not about him was a distraction, added that he was busy carrying out his campaign.
“With this, I want to call on the people of Imo State to remove all doubt and work for our success.
“I won a free and fair primary contest. I’ve been concentrating on my campaign. I want to make it clear to the Imo people that I am the candidate of the Labour Party and they should continue to campaign for me.
“I am making this call to the Imo people to come out and campaign and take back their state because of the distractions some people created.
“It is a simple matter that people can just call INEC and confirm the authentic person that is the candidate.
Some people went to the Federal High Court, their case was thrown out. They went for an appeal and the same thing happened. They went to the Supreme Court and the case has finally been thrown out. There cases have all been dismissed. They are seeking to confuse Imo people.
“I am going to run a government of the people by the people and for the
people,” Achonu said of his plans if he emerged the Governor of Imo State.
Meanwhile, the Labour Party has celebrated the Supreme Court judgement dismissing an appeal brought before it by one Basil Maduka against the Labour Party over the rightful candidate of the party in the Imo state governorship election on the ground of locus standi.
A panel of five justices led by Iyang Okoro also cautioned the Appellant for abusing court process and wasting the time of the courts all through from the lower courts.
Two other respondents in the matter were Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC and the Lamidi Apapa led candidate, Joseph Ukaegbu, alias Ikenga, whose request to seek for a consequential order was also rejected by the Supreme Court.
With this judgement by the highest court in Nigeria, the Lamidi Apapa’s plot to hijack the affairs of the Labour Party including the powers to nominate candidates has finally come to an end.
Speaking to the media shortly after the judgment, the counsel to the Labour Party, Barrister Okwudili Anozie, said, “Today at the Supreme Court, the antics of Basil Maduka and his accomplice Joseph Ukaegbu, alias Ikenga, was put to an end as they met their Waterloo at the Apex Court.
“Today was a culmination of their deceit and lies to Imolites spanning from their misrepresentation of the true position of the judgments of the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal.
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“Upon the exposure and collapse of their lies before the Supreme Court today, Basil’s Counsel, with tails in between his legs, immediately withdrew his subterfuge appeal that was aimed at giving credence to Ukaegbu’s sham, non-existent primaries.
“The Supreme Court didn’t entertain Ukaegbu’s counsel’s ignorant attempt to seek for a consequential order, which even a first year student of law knows cannot be sought by a Respondent especially in this case where the appeal was dismissed.
“Indeed, today has been a day of reckoning for evil doers whose sole plan was to stop the aspiration of Imolites in their determination to Take Imo Back through Senator Athan Nneji Achonu,” LP said in a statement signed by their national publicity secretary, Obiora Iffoh.
