Denial of entitlements: Ex-rep wins N100m suit against his rival, INEC, NASS, A-G, Speaker

    

Justice Ibrahim Auta of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has awarded N100 million in favour of Dr. Christian Okeke, the national assembly member that represented Idemili North/South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives between 2006 and 2007.

The award was for the inconveniences and losses he incurred for nearly three years when the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC refused to give him a certificate of return as the duly elected candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the March 12 and 16, 2003 national assembly election.

Awarding the N100 million to Okeke in his judgement last Thursday, out of a total of N190 million sought by Okeke, against Hon. Jerry Ugokwe who represented the contituency in the House between 2003 and 2006; INEC, Attorney-General of the Federation, A-G; the Speaker of the National Assembly, Clerk of the National Assembly and the National Assembly itself, Justice Auta bemoaned INEC for annulling the result of the election already declared in favour of Okeke, ab initio.

Justice  Auta further bemoaned INEC for refusing to issue a certificate of return to Okeke, even after he had fought his way and reclaimed his mandate through the election petition tribunal which sat in Awka, Anambra State and declared him winner of the election in January, 2005 and his victory was reaffirmed by the Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu on May 5, 2005.

The court also bemoaned the action of Ugokwe and his lawyer who after the judgements of the election tribunal and the Appeal Court, frivorously took the matter to ECOWAS court which they knew has no jurisdiction in an election matter in Nigeria  at all.

Okeke had dragged the respondents to the court claiming the sum of over N190 million from them as his entitlements for the two years and 10 months denied him from participating in the activities of the national assembly and at the same time, denying him the accruing benefits for no just cause.

In his statement of claims, filed on his behalf by his legal counsel, John Asoluka and Mrs. Ifeoma Okeke, Okeke argued that even when the Appeal Court which is the final arbiter in a national assembly elections matter had reaffirmed his vitcory, Ugokwe went to ECOWAS court and institutionalized illegality by staying in the House for another 10 months before he was finally sworn in on March 16, 2006, which made him to represent the electorate for only 14 months (March 16, 2006 to May 29, 2007).when that dispensation elapsed.

Okeke further contended that INEC has no powers to annul his election after declaring him winner, not to talk of giving a certificate of return to Ugokwe, his rival from the same PDP, who did not even participate in the election, as affirmed by the election tribunal and the Appeal Court.

Insisting that his tenure was cut short by two years and 10 months as a result of the conspiracy of the defendants, Okeke maintained that at no time was Ugokwe a candidate of PDP which he claimed, neither did he participate in the national assembly election held within the Idemili North/South federal constituency of Anambra State on March 12 and 16, 2003, as confirmed by the tribunal and reaffirmed by the Appeal Court.

He wondered why Ugokwe headed to an ECOWAS court and applied a delay tactics for another five months, even after the ECOWAS court had declined jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

He lamented that instead of vacating his seat honourably, Ugokwe even went further and filed an appeal for a retrial of his case in the same ECOWAS court that had earlier declined jurisdiction, just to keep the case hanging so that he would continue to remain on seat in the House and collect allowances and other entitlements accrued to him (Okeke).

He contended that even when the then Speaker of the House, Alhaji Aminu Bello Masari barred him from the House on September 22, 2005 but still refused to swear him (Okeke) in, on the ground that he must produce INEC certificate of return, which INEC was unwilling to produce to him in conspiracy with Ugokwe, the national assembly continued paying Ugokwe all the allowances and other entitlements due for him (Okeke) uptill March 16, 2006 when he was eventually sworn-in , out of God's intervention.