A federal high court in Owerri today sacked the member-elect for Nkwerre/Nwangele/Njaba/Isu federal constituency of Imo state, hon. Ugonna Ozurigbo.
Hon Ozurigbo had, last Wednesday, resigned his position as the deputy speaker of the Imo state house of assembly.
Justice Rigime, who delivered the judgment, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to issue a certificate of return to Mr. Kingsley Echendu of the Peoples Democratic Party.
Neither PDP nor its candidate was a party to the suit.
He court said that Mr. Harrison Nwadike, who is the plaintiff, was the “rightful winner” of the all progressives congress primary election in the federal constituency.
Mr. Nwadike had taken his party, APC, and INEC to court over the submission of Ozurigbo’s name as the candidate of the party.
He prayed the court to declare him as the APC’S rightful candidate, contended that automatic tickets were unknown to the constitution.
The
justice, who said that the candidacy of Ozurigbo was illegitimate, ordered INEC
to issue the PDP candidate, Echendu, who came second in the general election,
with a certificate of return as the rightful winner of the election.