At last, PDP acknowledges court order

At last, the Peoples Democratic Party has acknowledged the court order, which asked it not to go ahead with the Saturdays (today) governorship primaries in Bayelsa State.The party, in a preliminary objection filed against Governor Timipre Sylvas case, said the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the case.In the motion brought by the PDP counsel, Chief Olusola Oke, the party said that it was wrong for the court to assume jurisdiction in the case when it was aware that the 2010 Electoral Act did not permit it to do so.In a 15-paragraph affidavit, the party showed why the order sought by Sylva should not be allowed by the court, principal of which was lack of jurisdiction.The party listed two issues for determination, which are, whether the court has the power to stop the holding of a political partys primaries in view of Section 87(10) of the Electoral Act and whether it was just and equitable to stop the holding of the primaries.The party relied on several decided cases like Onuoha v. Okafor (1983) 2 SC NLR 244 and Ondo State v. EKSG and submitted that the honourable court lacks the jurisdiction to make the order of interim injunction as it is being prayed to do in this application.Section 87 (10) of the 2010 Electoral Act, as amended, states that, Nothing in this section shall empower the courts to stop the holding of primaries or general elections under this Act pending the determination of any suit. The party, therefore, asked for accelerated hearing of the case, arguing that the law was settled where the facts in support of an application for interim orders of injunction are the same as those in support of the main claim or are intricately interwoven with the facts needed to determine the main claim, court of equity is enjoined to refuse granting an interim injunction and instead, order accelerated hearing of the substantive claim.The court, presided by Justice Gabriel Koloawole, had on Wednesday ordered the PDP to stop its planned governorship primaries in Bayelsa State after it allowed an ex-parte motion brought against the PDP, INEC and the partys acting National Chairman, Alhaji Kawu Baraje.Sylva, in the motion filed through his counsel, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, had asked the court to restrain the defendants and their agents from conducting the primaries on November 19 or any other day, pending the determination of the suit.
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