Secondus Asks Appeal Court to Affirm His Four-year Tenure

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*Insists his tenure ends December 9
*Says only NEC can suspend PDP national officer

The embattled National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, has asked the Abuja Division of the
Court of Appeal to affirm that his four-year tenure ends on
December 9, 2021.

He also asked the appellate court to quash the orders of the two
high courts that restrained him as the national chairman of the
party.

Secondus also asked the court to nullify his suspension,
insisting that Section 59(3) of the PDP constitution clearly stated
that the ward or the state executive committee of any state has no
powers to suspend any national officer of the party.

Following attempts to remove Secondus from office by some
chieftains of PDP, the governors of the party, Board of Trustees
(BoT) members, former Senate Presidents, former governors, and
other leaders of the party had on August 10, 2021, abridged his
tenure by bringing the party’s National Convention forward from
December 2021 to October.

They had also prevailed on the Secondus-led National Working
Committee of the party (NWC) not to seek re-election at the October
National Convention.

Political analysts had thought that the intervention of the
leaders of the party would calm frayed nerves,But a Rivers State
High Court, in an interim order dated August 23, 2021 and signed by
Justice O. Gbasam and the Assistant Chief Registrar (Litigation),
Patricia N. Victor Nwoka, restrained Secondus from parading himself
as the PDP National Chairman.

The claimants/applicants in the suit No HC/240/2021, are:
Ibeawuchi Ernest Alex, Dennis Nna Amadi, Emmanuel Stephen and
Umezirike Onucha, while the defendants are: Secondus and the
PDP.

In obedience to the Rivers State High Court order, Secondus
abdicated his office and handed over to his deputy, Mr. Yemi
Akinwonmi

However, his supporters went to a Kebbi State High Court, which
issued an interim order directing him to resume office, pending the
determination of the substantive suit.

But few hours after respite came his way, another high court in
Cross River State ordered him to stop parading himself as the
Chairman of the main opposition party

The interim order was issued by Justice Edem Kufre, upon an
application brought by a member of the party, Enang Wani, ahead of
the PDP NEC meeting.

To ensure that he returns to his desk and also remains in office
until the end of his tenure, Secondus has asked the appellate court
to affirm that his four-year tenure will end on December 9,
2021.

In the appeal filed by his lawyer, Mr. Emeka Etiaba (SAN), the
PDP chairman is challenging the order of the Degema High Court in
Rivers State and the Calabar High Court in Cross River State.

He argued that Section 59(3) of the PDP constitution clearly
stated that the wards or the state executive committee of any state
has no powers to suspend any national officer of the party

According to him, it is the National Executive Committee (NEC)
of the party that has the right to suspend a national officer after
he has passed through a disciplinary committee.

He also insisted that the constitution of the party guaranteed
that the tenure of any member of the NWC, including the national
chairman, is four years, stressing that his tenure will end on
December 9.