Since the Court of Appeal in Lagos voided the election of Hon Destiny Nwagwu in November 2023, declaring Hon Aaron Uzodike as the duly elected representative for Aba North in the Abia State House of Assembly, Speaker Hon Emmanuel Emeruwa has refused to comply with the ruling, ThisDay reports.
The Eighth session of the Abia State House of Assembly has surpassed one year of legislative activity, having been inaugurated in June 2023.
Yet, among the 24 state constituencies represented in the Assembly, Aba North remains unrepresented. The seat has been vacant since November 27, 2023, when the Court of Appeal invalidated Hon Destiny Nwagwu’s mandate, appointing Hon Aaron Uzodike as the rightful occupant of the Aba North seat in the Eighth Abia House.
Uzodike, a former member from the seventh Abia House representing the now-defunct ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), sought to reclaim his mandate for a second term. He lost to Labour Party candidate Hon Nwagwu, who benefited from the momentum of the Peter Obi wave in the 2023 general elections. Uzodike contested this loss at the Abia State Governorship and House of Assembly Elections Petitions Tribunal but was again defeated. Undeterred, Uzodike appealed to the Court of Appeal.
On November 27, 2023, Uzodike saw his ambition realized when the appellate court ruled in his favor, instructing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to revoke the Certificate of Return issued to Nwagwu and issue a new one to Uzodike. Following the court’s order, INEC promptly issued the certificate to Uzodike on December 13, 2023, referenced as SHA/0648/2023. However, armed with his new certificate, Uzodike found himself unable to assume his seat, as political maneuvering obstructed his path.
After the court’s intervention overturned his mandate, Nwagwu quickly sought relief from the Abia State High Court in Ukwa, securing an ex-parte order that barred Speaker Emeruwa from swearing in Uzodike. Despite the Speaker scheduling Uzodike’s inauguration for December 18, 2023, Nwagwu’s injunction interceded. For unexplained political reasons, Emeruwa opted to adhere to the injunction from a lower court, despite the appellate court’s clear ruling. By law, the Appeal Court stands as the final authority in matters pertaining to state and national assembly elections.
In defending his inaction, the Abia Assembly Speaker argued that the appellate court had not specifically ordered him to swear in Uzodike. He also claimed he had no choice but to comply with the injunction he received.
Ultimately, Nwagwu’s case at the high court, marked HUK/1/2023, was dismissed on March 19, 2024, by Justice C. H. Ahuchaogu, who had previously issued the ex-parte order. Even after this setback, Uzodike’s predicament endured, and his aspirations to join the Eighth Abia House remained unrealized.
During his inaugural press conference on June 13, 2024, to commemorate the first anniversary of the Eighth Abia House, the Speaker revealed additional reasons for not inaugurating Uzodike. He noted that the PDP lawmaker-elect had filed forms 48 and 49 to hold him in contempt for failing to swear him in. “If I were jailed, could I still be in prison and swear him in?” the Speaker questioned with evident frustration.
In this intricate dance of politics, Uzodike’s victory at the Appeal Court marked a shift, increasing the PDP’s presence in the 24-member House to 12.
At its inauguration on June 14, 2023, the Eighth Abia House comprised 11 PDP members, 10 Labour Party, two from the Young Progressives Party (YPP), and one from the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Despite this slender majority, the PDP struggled during the election of principal officers, as the ruling Labour Party outmaneuvered them, securing the Speaker’s position with backing from YPP and APC members. Furthermore, the PDP faced embarrassment as it was sidelined from the role of Majority Leader, despite being the largest party in the Eighth Abia House. Consequently, it was a significant disappointment for the Labour Party when Hon Nwagwu’s defeat in the appellate court reduced their representation to nine. Though two YPP lawmakers, Hon. Fyne Ahuama of Osisioma Ngwa South and Hon. Iheanacho Nwogu of Osisioma North, have defected to the LP, this change has not shifted the majority status of the PDP. With Uzodike still poised to join, the PDP maintains 12 legislators compared to LP’s 11. While the ruling party may feel uneasy about being outnumbered in the House by its primary opponent, it still holds a slim majority. The PDP enjoys the right to claim this narrow majority, but the LP asserts its dominance, and if Uzodike is not inaugurated, the impact of the PDP’s majority is lessened.
The ruling party has made no secret of its desire to reclaim the Aba North seat, despite having lost it in court. Some traditional rulers in Aba North were recruited to sign a statement urging the Speaker to declare the seat vacant, alleging that Uzodike had fled abroad and calling for a by-election to fill the “vacant seat.”
The ruling party’s strategy was to harness its incumbency to regain the seat lost in court, but this underhanded plan fell apart amid public outrage.
Emeruwa’s continual delays have frustrated both Uzodike and the PDP. Yet, the former ruling party remains determined to seat its lawmaker-elect in the Abia Assembly. It has persistently pressured the Speaker to allow Uzodike to take his seat. Party leaders and stakeholders have condemned Emeruwa’s actions, urging him to uphold the rule of law.
In a statement from Abia PDP Vice Chairman Elder Amah Abraham, who also serves as the Acting State Publicity Secretary, the party reaffirmed that all necessary conditions have been met for Uzodike to assume his seat.
The LP has reacted forcefully, accusing the Abia Speaker and his party of politicizing the mandate of the Aba North State constituency. They warn that ignoring the rule of law is a threat to democracy and stability in Abia State.
“The delay is not only arbitrary and illegal but also disrespectful to the judiciary and the laws of the land. This situation risks destabilizing not only the Aba North constituency, which has been denied a voice in governance, but also the entire Abia State,” the PDP contended.
The Abia PDP further urged the Speaker to take lessons from the National Assembly, where Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Hon. Tajudeen Abbas promptly swore in all legislators who had won their mandates in court, regardless of party affiliation. The PDP has implicated Governor Alex Otti as well, claiming he is directing the actions of the Abia Speaker. This theory gained traction from Uzodike’s assertion that the Speaker told him he was acting on “orders from above” not to inaugurate him. Consequently, the party has shifted its focus to Otti, demanding he intervene and ensure Uzodike’s inauguration.
However, Otti’s alleged involvement has been swiftly refuted by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Ferdinand Ekeoma, who asserted that the Abia legislature operates independently and that the governor has no influence over the Speaker’s conduct. Even so, this denial has done little to dispel suspicions of executive manipulation. The PDP continues to emphasize that the Speaker’s actions reveal the authoritarian tendencies of the current government, branding its members as “autocrats disguising as democrats.”
With Speaker Emeruwa remaining resolute despite the surrounding criticism, the Abia PDP has called on “the elders and good people of the State to intervene and prevent the Labour Party from disregarding the courts and their rulings.” They warned that normalizing such behavior would not only undermine democracy but also make future corrections exceedingly difficult.
Some Abia PDP leaders have also urged LP national leader Mr. Peter Obi to address the situation in Abia and rein in his party members. Chief John Okiyi Kalu, a former Commissioner for Trade and Investment and a constituent of Aba North, believes that the LP presidential candidate from the 2023 elections has the authority to prevent his party, currently in power in Abia, from undermining the rule of law. He remarked, “It is worth noting that the party in power in Abia State, the Labour Party, is led by our esteemed democrat, Mr. Peter Obi, who has been guiding a group of presumably principled young men and women called ‘Obidients’ in their quest for good governance in Nigeria.”
Though the two YPP lawmakers, Hon. Fyne Ahuama of Osisioma Ngwa South and Hon. Iheanacho Nwogu of Osisioma North, have defected to the LP, this shift has not changed the PDP’s majority status. With Uzodike still awaiting his opportunity, PDP will retain 12 legislators compared to LP’s 11. While the ruling party may feel uneasy being outnumbered in the House by the main opposition, it still claims a slim majority. PDP may flaunt its slight edge, but LP asserts total control of the House, and preventing Uzodike’s inauguration will undermine PDP’s majority.
The ruling party has made its intentions clear: it aims to reclaim the Aba North seat despite losing it in court. Some traditional rulers in Aba North were allegedly enlisted to sign a statement urging the Speaker to declare the seat vacant, claiming that Uzodike had fled abroad and calling for INEC to hold a by-election to fill the “vacant seat.”
The strategy was for the ruling party to use its incumbency to regain the lost seat. However, this underhanded plan quickly unraveled in response to public outrage.
Emeruwa’s persistent delay has frustrated both Uzodike and his party, the PDP. Yet, the former ruling party remains determined to secure its lawmaker-elect’s seat in the Abia Assembly, continuously pressuring the Speaker to allow Uzodike to take his place. The party leadership and key stakeholders have condemned Emeruwa’s actions, urging him to respect the rule of law.
In a statement from Elder Amah Abraham, the Abia PDP Vice Chairman and Acting State Publicity Secretary, the party asserted that all necessary conditions for Uzodike’s inauguration have been met.
The LP has come under fire as the main opposition party, accusing the Abia Speaker of undermining the mandate of the Aba North State constituency, and warning that defiance of the rule of law threatens democracy in Abia State.
“The delay is not only arbitrary but also illegal, showing a blatant disrespect for the judiciary and the laws of the land, potentially endangering the democratic process.”
Surprisingly, neither Mr. Peter Obi nor any leaders of the ‘Obidient’ movement have spoken out against the turmoil in Abia State.
PDP is not alone in opposing Abia Speaker’s refusal to implement the Appeal Court ruling regarding the swearing-in of the Aba North member-elect. Other opposition parties have voiced their objections as well. Comrade Ezumaibe Kelechiukwu, the Abia State chairman of the African Action Congress (AAC), stressed that “justice must prevail and the democratic principles we cherish upheld” in the Abia Assembly. He expressed “great disappointment” in Speaker Emeruwa’s “flagrant disregard for the rule of law and principles of justice,” asserting that there was no justification for the Speaker’s continued delay in swearing in Uzodike after INEC issued him the Certificate of Return. “We demand that the Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly uphold the rule of law and respect the court’s decision by swearing in Hon. Aaron Uzodike without further delay,” he stated.
On its part, the Abia chapter of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), which recently lost two state lawmakers to LP, urged the Speaker to resolve the impasse over the Aba North seat. During a radio program, Open Parliament, on July 18, 2024, YPP state chairman Chimex Ogbonna asserted that the Aba North member-elect should be allowed to assume his seat in the Abia Assembly without delay, given the court’s ruling in his favor.
Legal practitioner and rights activist Mr. Emperor Ogbonna, also a member of YPP, condemned the Speaker’s reluctance to comply with a simple court verdict. He explained that since INEC had fulfilled its obligation by issuing a Certificate of Return to Uzodike, the Speaker required no further justification to inaugurate the Aba North member-elect.
Uzodike may feel frustrated and fatigued in his attempts to rejoin the Abia Assembly, but he remains resolute in his fight. He has submitted all necessary documents, including his Certificate of Return, and has presented himself multiple times for inauguration, only to be denied.
He has called on Governor Otti to instruct the Speaker to proceed with his inauguration, asserting that the Governor has the influence to do so. Uzodike maintains that there are no legal obstacles preventing his inauguration.
“As of today, there is nothing pending in any court here in Abia, Nigeria, West Africa, or globally that restrains the Speaker from inaugurating me,” the embattled lawmaker-elect stated.
Meanwhile, his opponent, Hon Nwagwu, has finally conceded defeat and moved on after a fruitless attempt to reclaim the legislative seat he lost in the appellate court following a five-month tenure in the House. He was inaugurated on July 16, alongside other members, as one of the founding members of the Abia State House of Assembly Service Commission. With this new appointment, he has the chance to fight another day—perhaps in 2027, when he may seek to return to the position of lawmaker, having briefly experienced its rewards.
