As the week opens and lawyers return to the temple of Justice, public attention in Rivers State would no doubt focus on Senator Magnus Abe.
The Senator, we have learnt, is like a wounded lion that is sulking over its injuries.
Despite scheming to discredit processes leading to the conduct of the APC Ward Congress in Rivers and possibly halt it, the exercise went on as planned.
At the weekend, Abe narrowly missed an opportunity to slam an injunction on the Rivers APC led by his former boss, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi.
Apparently, the attempt to hurriedly file a matter manually at the Judiciary backfired, presumably after the APC raised an eyebrow of its own through its Spokesman, Chief Ogbonna Nwuke.
“It has become necessary to inform members of the public, including our teeming supporters”, the APC said in a terse statement, “of the existence of the plot that is being hatched to obstruct the conduct of the congress.”
The party declared it learnt that “at about 4pm, Friday, 30th July, 2021, Senator Abe’s lawyer were seen filing papers to stop the APC from going along with its planned congress as approved by the National Secretariat.”
“It is quite clear by now that each time the APC plans to deepen its internal democracy through processes that would enable members test their popularity” the APC explained, “certain paper tigers in our midst who lack active grassroot support connive with their friends in the other party to file frivolous cases.”
The APC alleged Abe was receiving help from what Chief Nwuke, a former member of the Federal House of Representatives described as “external collaborators.”
The Telegraph has learnt that the statement, timely as it was, may have thrown a spanner into the works.
We have gathered that lawyers representing the APC were equally on ground in order to monitor ongoing proceedings.
It is doubtful that Abe who announced Friday, he and his supporters will have nothing to do with the ward congresses, would present any fresh protest before the APC’s Appeals Committee.
Members of the committee are already in town. We hear that they will begin sitting today, Monday August 2, 2021.
If Abe’s supporters fail to press any charges, the Appeals Committee would be at liberty to clear the path for elected representatives at the ward level to be sworn in.
Will Abe seek for instance, to stop the swearing in ceremony of ward officials from taking place?
In the meantime, there are suspicions that Abe’s associates in Freedom House might still wish to pull a few stunts through the Judiciary.
The APC would be holding its local government congresses on Saturday. Stopping the exercise could be one way of getting at the Minister of Transportation and his support base at the grassroots by Abe and his friends.
But questions are already being asked in some quarters as analysts consider all options.
Is it possible to secure an injunction now that the process (the conduct of the congresses) has started?
Lawyers may have differing opinions on the subject, but only a presiding judge might offer an answer when such a matter is eventually tabled before a court.