A former deputy Inspector General of Police and senatorial aspirant for the Akwa Ibom North West (Ikot Ekpene) district, Udom Ekpoudom, has said he will appeal the two judgments which declared Senator Godswill Akpabio the All Progressives Congress candidate for the senatorial seat.
The PUNCH reports that the former DIG had earlier been declared the winner of the party’s primary conducted on May 28, 2022, by the Independent National Electoral Commission in the state.
But a re-run primary conducted on June 9, 2022, at the Godswill Akpabio Empowerment Centre, Ikot Ekpene, declared the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs the candidate for the senatorial seat, pushing the retired DIG to challenge Akpabio’s declaration in court.
However, the Federal High Court presided by Justice Emeka Nwite, in Abuja, on September 15, 2022, dismissed the lawsuit against INEC and the APC for lacking in merit. This was followed by a similar one by Justice Donatus Okorowo’s judgment on September 23, 2022.
A statement by the Director-General of Ekpoudom Campaign Organisation, Uwem Udoma, titled, “Judgment on Akwa Ibom North-West APC senatorial ticket: Our position”, made available to our correspondent on Sunday said all constitutional means would be explored to retrieve the mandate which had earlier been given to Ekpoudom by his people during the primary.
“By the law, we have instructed our legal team to promptly appeal both Justice Nwite’s judgment (FHC/ABJ/CS/1011/2022) of September 15, 2022, and Justice Okorowo’s judgment (FHC/ABJ/CS/1000/2022) of September 23, 2022.”
“Consequently, we hereby urge all members of the Campaign Organisation and the APC supporters in the senatorial district to remain calm and resolute as notwithstanding, with this ‘temporal setback’, we shall explore all legal and constitutional means to ensure that the mandate entrusted to Ekpoudom is legally protected.
“Most importantly, we hereby assure our teaming APC supporters and indeed the good people of Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial district that come 2023, Abak Federal Constituency will produce the next senator.”
