With yesterday’s decision of the Supreme Court terminating the last judicial hurdles before us, the Rivers APC 2023 Campaign Council is elated to report that our party’s candidates are finally on the home stretch to victory at the 2023 general elections holding only weeks away.
The apex Court on Monday, February 6, 2023, dismissed four appeals in George Orlu & Ors v. APC & 2 Ors in SC/CV/29/2022; George Orlu & Ors v. Nwankwo Uzoije Ndubuisi & 49 Ors in SC/CV/30/2022; George Orlu & Ors v. INEC & 2 Ors in SC/CV/31/2022 and George Orlu & Ors v. Tonye Patrick Cole in SC/CV/32/2022.
The appeals were dismissed sequel to the filing of a Notice of Discontinuance by the Appellants who were challenging the decision of the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt that set aside an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt. The said judgment by Justice Emmanuel Obile nullified all the candidates presented by the Rivers APC for the 2023 general elections on grounds of alleged exclusion of George Orlu and others in the election of Ad Hoc Delegates of the party.
Coming on a day vanquished anti-democratic forces of a faction of the PDP in Rivers State loyal to Nyesom Wike sought in vain to stop the governorship campaign train of Arc. Tonye Cole and Dr. Innocent Barikor in Omuma LGA with a devilish dawn attack on the Umunachi Rally grounds, the 2023 governorship Campaign Council is overwhelmed with joy that the last hurdles placed between us and victory has been cleared.
We salute the courage and tenacity of our party leaders and members who stood steadfastly behind our candidates and the party when a climate of doubt was cast on our fate in the 2023 general elections.
With the storm in the Judiciary now over, we enjoin party faithful to cover every blade of grass to deliver APC candidates at all levels. We owe this generation and posterity a duty to elect Arc. Tonye Cole, Mni, as Governor to rescue our dear State from the doldrums of poverty, violence, unprecedented unemployment, rot and stagnation in our State civil service that the incompetent and cantankerous Nyesom Wike Administration foisted on us since 2015.
The solemn truth is we cannot afford a further degeneration of our core values through a consolidation howsoever of the embarrassing lack of purpose and direction of the last eight years.
Sogbeye C. Eli
Spokesman, Rivers APC 2023 Campaign Council
February 7, 2023.
