Senator Stella Oduah (PDP, Anambra North) has described media reports that yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling sacked her and all other federal lawmakers from Anambra State, including senators Uche Ekwunife (PDP, Anambra Central) and Andy Uba (PDP, Anambra South).
The former Aviation Minister in a statement issued in Abuja by her Press Secretary, Cynthia Ferdinand, said: “The Apex Court did not order the withdrawal of her certificate of return.
“The judgement only affirmed that it was only the National Executive Council of a political party that had the legal right to sponsor candidates in an election.”
Oduah stressed that she and all the other lawmakers from Anambra State have not been sacked by the Supreme Court contrary to media reports.
“It is however pertinent to note that this is a mere misinterpretation of the Supreme Court rulings and should be disregarded in all entirety. The Supreme Court did not order the withdrawal of the Certificates of Return issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission,” she added.
Similarly, Senator Andy Uba says he remains the Senator representing Anambra South despite the Supreme Court verdict.
He told Channels Television that the Supreme Court judgment which re-affirmed Ejike Oguebego as Anambra PDP Chairman does not affect their seats in the National Assembly.
“It is the national that conducts primaries, not the state. So the issue of him being the one that we came under does not exist,” Uba said.
Asides reaffirming the chairmanship of Oguebego, the Supreme Court also declared the list of candidates submitted by the Ken Emeakayi-faction illegal.
Uba said: “The judgment is very clear. The Supreme Court did not get into the issue of nomination or who is supposed to be sitting in the Senate. All they did was to deal with the issue of who is the authentic chairman of PDP.”
Continuing, he noted: “When he went to court, Ejike Oguebego was not discussing the primaries or who the candidate was. What he wanted was for him to be restored as Chairman of PDP.
“Court did not say that we were being removed or it affected our seats as Senators of the Federal Republic or members of the National Assembly.”
Senator Uba also explained that a consequential order was not made in regards to the case.
“If the Supreme Court thought that we were wrong in where we are or that we came through a false means they would have made a consequential order to remove us,” he affirmed.
•Photo shows Stella Oduah and Andy Uba.
NEWS EXPRESS is Nigeria’s leading online newspaper. Published by Africa’s international award-winning journalist, Mr. Isaac Umunna, NEWS EXPRESS is Nigeria’s first truly professional online daily newspaper. It is published from Lagos, Nigeria’s economic and media hub, and has a provision for occasional special print editions. Thanks to our vast network of sources and dedicated team of professional journalists and contributors spread across Nigeria and overseas, NEWS EXPRESS has become synonymous with newsbreaks and exclusive stories from around the world.