Justice Peter Lifu of High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has stopped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from removing their acting national chairman, Ambassador Umar Iliya Damagum, from office.
The court granted the order after a motion moved by M. O. Onyilokwu, Esq., counsel for the Plaintiff/Applicant.
Justice Lifu held that, “The Defendants/Respondents are hereby restrained in the interim, from appointing, selecting, nominating any person to replace Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum as National Chairman or Acting National Chairman of the 1st Defendant/Respondent pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice already filed which is herein fixed against the 14th of May, 2024.
“The Defendants/Respondents by themselves, agents, privies or by any proxy, are hereby in the interim, restrained from according recognition to any person other than Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum as Acting National Chairman of the 1st Defendants/Respondents or giving effect to or acting upon any document purporting to be signed by the National Chairman or Acting National Chairman of the 1st Defendant without the name and signature of Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice already filed in Court in the instant suit.
“The Applicants are herein ordered to enter into a fresh undertaking to pay damages to the Respondents (to be assessed by the Court) if at the end of the day it is discovered that this order ought not to have been granted or that the Honourable Court was misled into granting same.”
The court gave the order in a motion ex-parte filed by Senator Umar El-Gash Maina and Alh. Zanna Gaddama, in a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/579/2024.
Respondents in the motion dated and filed on the May 2, 2024, are the PDP, it’s National Working Committee (NWC), National Executive Committee (NEC), Board of Trustees (BoT), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
In the motion paper, the plaintiffs had prayed for “An order of interim injunction restraining the 1st 4th Defendants/ Respondents, their agents, privies by whatsoever name called from appointing, selecting or nominating any person to replace Amb. Umar Illiya Damagum as National Chairman or Acting National Chairman of the 1sthDefendant/Respondent pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice.
“An order of interim injunction restraining the 5th Defendant/Respondent, its agents, officers or privies from according recognition to any person other than Amb. Umar Illiya Damagumaas Acting National Chairman of the 1st Defendant/Respondent or giving effect to or acting upon any document purporting to be signed by the National Chairman or Acting National Chairman of the 1st Defendant/Respondent without the name and signature of Amb. Umar Illiyan Damagum as the Acting National Chairman pending the hearing and a determination of the motion on notice.”
The affidavit in support of the application, an affidavit of extreme urgency and that of non-multiplicity of action, accompanying the ex-parte application were all deposed to by Amb. Umar El-Gasha Maina.