Ebonyi Lawyers protest delay in appeal transmission over PDP crisis
Lawyers, numbering over 20, Thursday protested at the Ebonyi State High Court, Abakaliki over an alleged delay in the transmission of Appeal Records in the suit filed by the dissolved State Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against the Caretaker Committee of the party set up by its National Working Committee.
The National Working Committee of the PDP had dissolved the State Working Committee of the party, led by Chief Onyekachi Nwebonyi, and constituted a Caretaker Committee with Chief Fred Udeogu as its Chairman.
Angered by the dissolution, the dissolved state committee dragged the NWC and the Caretaker Committee of the party to the state High court with the Chief Judge presiding over the matter.
The suit was later transferred to another judge in the court, Justice Elvis Ngele and finally Justice Vincent Nwanchor by the Chief Judge following the demand by the Caretaker Committee of the party.
Since then, the matter has continued to linger in court while the Caretaker Committee filed an appeal challenging the jurisdiction of the court on the matter.
On Thursday, over 20 lawyers believed to be working for the Caretaker Committee, stormed the offices of the state Chief Judge, Justice Anselem Nwigwe, Chief Registrar of the State High Court and Deputy Chief Registrar to protest the alleged delay in the transmission of the Appeal Records by Head of Department, Record Appeals of the High Court.
The lawyers, who were led by Michael Igbo and Luke Nkwegu, Secretary of the Caretaker Committee, who is one of the defendants in the suit against the Caretaker Committee of the PDP, expressed sadness over the delay in the transmission of the Appeal Records.
“We feel very bad about this seeming delay in the transmission of our Appeal Records, it’s a travesty of justice and threat to our democracy. Some people feel that they can manipulate everything; it shows the level of decay, the extent to which somebody thinks that he can manipulate everything around. It is indeed sad, it is a sad story. We are going to fight with the last drop of our blood legally to achieve justice,” they said.
The lawyers urged the Chief Judge to compel the HOD of the Appeal Records, Mr. Ezinwa Ogudu to without further delay, transmit the Appeal Records to the Appeal Court in Enugu to enable the Caretaker Committee get justice on the matter.
Ogudu, however, was not in office when contacted. His two mobile phone lines were also switched-off.
Meanwhile, the Fred Udeogu-led PDP has petitioned the state Chief Judge, Justice Anselem Nwigwe over the alleged delay in the transmission of the Appeal Records in the suit filed against it by the dissolved State Working Committee of the party. (NEW TELEGRAPH)
