The Special Court of Appeal Panel handling high-stakes political cases from Rivers State has reserved its judgment on consolidated appeals challenging the rulings of Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The three-member panel, led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi, announced the reserved judgment on Thursday after counsel for the parties adopted their final briefs and arguments.
One of the cases before the panel involves a controversial ruling by Justice Lifu, which barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission for local government elections. Despite the restriction, the election has since been conducted.
In a separate case, Justice Lifu granted an ex parte order restraining the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from dissolving the Rivers State PDP executive committee, which is allegedly loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
The courtroom saw a mild drama unfold when two senior lawyers independently announced their appearances for the PDP in a case seeking to sack 27 Rivers State House of Assembly members who support Wike. J. Y. Musa represented the PDP’s Umar Damagum-led executive, while B. F. Folurunsho asserted he was assigned by the National Legal Adviser, whom he stated has the authority over all party legal matters.