The Nigerian Police has withdrawn an amended charge it filed against the factional National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Edozie Njoku, Secretary to retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Mary Peter Odili and two others.
The defendants had been arraigned on a 14-count count charge of conspiring with others to forge the judgment of the Supreme Court.
The Inspector General of Police is accusing Mr Edozie and 3 others of forging the apex court judgment and the letterhead paper of retired Justice Mary Peter-Odili.
At a resumed hearing prosecution counsel for the police, Rinasonte Ezekiel, told Justice Mohammed Madugu of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, sitting in Bwari that he would be proceeding with the trial with the initial charge against the defendants
The police had filed a fresh 14-count amended charge dated 6th February 2023, which included Justice Mary Peter Odili’s Secretary, Ogunseye Adebisi as the 3rd defendant.
It has now abandoned the charge.
Following the withdrawal of the amended charge, the court proceeded with the trial, with the prosecution, calling the first witness.
The witness said after the 2019 convention he emerged as deputy national secretary and Victor Oye as National Chairman.
The convention he noted was supervised by INEC, and the BOT members after which 36 States Chairmen and FCT, the Party secretary of all States, and 32 NWC members of the party emerged.
The witness noted it was after the Awka convention on the 31st May 2018, that Edozie Njoku, allegedly began to parade himself as the new national chairman of APGA.
This issue became the subject of several litigations, which eventually reached the Supreme Court.
Mr Edozie is accused of using a forged Supreme Court document to parade himself as the national chairman of the party.
The matter was adjourned till 27th April for further hearing.
The Supreme Court had made a typographical error and slip in the Lead Judgment of the Court presided over by and delivered by Justice Mary Peter-Odili (Rtd), on October 14, 2021.
The name of Edozie Njoku was accidentally replaced with that of Victor Oye whose name was never mentioned in the suit.
An error the Apex court has since corrected.
PDP CALLS FOR RESUMPTION, COMPLETION OF ADAMAWA SUPPLEMENTARY ELECTION COLLATION
The Peoples Democratic Party in Adamawa State has called for completion of the ongoing supplementary election process in the state.
The party’s Governorship campaign Organisation in a protest to INEC headquarters in Yola issued 72 hours ultimatum to the umpire to complete the last Saturday exercise.
These are supporters of the PDP governorship candidate in the APRIL 15 rerun election.
They came out in their numbers to air their views in a peaceful protest at the INEC office in Yola.
They want INEC to douse tension in the state by completing the electoral process, believing it will usher in popular candidate.
Meanwhile, international election observers who monitored the exercise shared same views.
PDP also demanded removal of the state’s Resident Electoral Commissioner for partisanship.
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