The APC has reacted to Wednesday’s ruling by a Port Harcourt High Court dismissing a contempt charge filed by Hon. Igo Aguma.
The Court presided over by Justice George Omereji in its ruling tossed out the case, saying the matter which was brought before it lacked in merit.
According to what the Telegraph has gathered, Igo Aguma had flown in Tuesday from Abuja. He was accompanied by Hon. Emma Deeyah and Livingstone Wechie, his top media hand.
Wednesday morning, the tide changed. Justice Omereji slammed a-N50, 000 fine on the litigant before dismissing the suit.
The APC said in its reaction, “We have received news of the decision of a Port Harcourt High Court presided over by Justice George Omereji. In it, the learned Judge threw overboard, a case filed by Hon Igo Aguma in which he sought to commit some statutory members of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State whom he had accused of contempt.
“We had earlier maintained”, the APC said in a statement issued by its Spokesman, Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke, “that we did not act in spite of the order of Justice George Omereji, which to wit, directed Hon. Igo Aguma to work with his colleagues in rebuilding the party.”
Nwuke said the ruling had put paid to arguments over Aguma’s insistence that he is the Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Rivers APC.
According to APC’s Spokesman, “Wednesday’s decision by the Port Harcourt High Court has finally set aside the excursion into nothingness that our friend and associate embarked upon.
“It is obvious in the eyes of the law, that Hon Aguma’s claims were frivolous, empty and a waste of the time of the court.
“Beyond that, it is proof that the claimant reneged on the substance of the ruling which ordered him to work in the company of others to accomplish the task of rebuilding the APC in Rivers State.
The party which expressed joy over the ruling noted that the decision of the High Court would send “a signal to others who may want to approach the courts in future with frivolous matters.”
“We congratulate Senator Andrew Uchendu and Hon. Sokonte Davies who were the principle targets of Aguma’s case on their victory”, Nwuke said in the statement.
“The fact that the Court saw no merit in his attempt to press contempt charges is a vindication of the forthright steps taken by the statutory members, 28 out 38, to salvage our great party from the claws of those who were intent on destroying the basis of our common unity.
“This decision in our view has put paid to claims by Igo Aguma” that he is still the “Chairman of APC’s Caretaker Committee”, the statement explained.
“We hope that Hon. Igo Aguma would take note of this obvious fact and refrain from further parading himself as the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee.
“In failing to honour his plea, the High Court may have inadvertently agreed with his removal. Already, a superior court holden in Abuja has ordered a stay of execution of the judgment of Justice Omereji.
“The defeat of his contempt case should not leave him in any doubt about his unnecessary bid to force himself on the party. It has failed on arrival”, the statement stressed.
“We urge Aguma and his friends to come back home”, the APC remarked, “With our hands outstretched, we await the return of our friends. We can rebuild our great party together and prove to the world that our differences are not enough to stop us from reaching the shore.”
Many APC members of the APC are in a jubilant mood as the news spreads across Rivers State.
Observers say it is the first time in several months that the APC would secure victory in any court of law in Rivers State.