The Supreme Court has sacked the Majority Leader of Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Victor Uzoma Chukwu, as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Ezza North West State Constituency of Ebonyi, in the March 18 general election.
The Supreme Court declared Leonard Nweke Igboke as the duly nominated House of Assembly candidate of APC in Ezza North West State Constituency of Ebonyi.
Igboke, who won the APC primaries in the Constituency on May 26 last year, had his name removed from the final names of aspirants published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on July 22, 2022.
Disgruntled with the development Igboke approached the Federal High Court, Abakaliki, on August 3, 2022, and the court affirmed him as the rightful candidate of the APC in the Constituency.
However, Chukwu appealed the decision at the Enugu Division of the Court of Appeal, which dismissed the judgement of the lower court and held that the Majority Leader was the APC candidate in the Constituency.
Subsequently, Igboke challenged the judgement in the Supreme Court on February 9, 2023.
Delivering the judgement at the Supreme Court on Thursday, Justice Mohammadu Lawal Garba JSC, who led the five-man Panel of Justices, set aside the Judgment of the Court of Appeal, in its entirety and restored the earlier judgment of the Federal High Court, Abakaliki.
With this Supreme Court judgment, Igboke, is the authentic APC candidate for Ezza North West State Constituency of Ebonyi State, in the March 18th, 2023 general election.
Reacting to his victory at the Supreme Court, Igboke said: “I thank the Learned Justices of the Supreme Court for the erudite final Judgment. This is a victory for democracy and restoration of the mandate unanimously given to me by the good people of My Constituency.
“I extend hands of fellowship to all men of Goodwill, including the House Leader, Rt. Hon. Victor Uzoma Chukwu (Inyadime) and his supporters. It’s our collective victory and our Mandate.”