Court Granted Obaseki Relief To Participate In PDP Primaries

PORT-HARCOURT: A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has refused to bar Godwin Obaseki, the Edo State Governor, from participating in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary election slated for Thursday, June 24, 2020.

Gov. Obaseki was granted waiver by the PDP recently after he joined the opposition party from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The suit was instituted by one of the governorship aspirants of the PDP, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, who had vowed not to step down for Gov. Obaseki.

A major reason stated by Mr Ogbeide-Ihama was that Gov. Obaseki recently joined the party and only those who purchased the forms during the stipulated window should be allowed to participate in the primary election.

Just like Gov. Obaseki’s former party, the APC, Mr Ogbeide-Ihama also questioned his educational credentials.

Mr Ogbeide-Ihama also prayed that the primaries be put on hold pending when the court would hear the motion on notice.

The judge, E. A Obile, however, did not grant that prayer. The judge asked that the motion seeking to bar Gov. Obaseki be served on the defendants including Gov. Obaseki via newspaper publication.

Recall, Gov. Obaseki joined the Peoples Democratic Party on Friday, June 19, 2020 after he was disqualified by his former party, APC, from seeking re-election allegedly for submitting questionable certificates.