Supreme Court Settles APGA Leadership Crisis: Sly Ezeokenwa Recognized as National Chairman
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has officially resolved the leadership dispute within the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), affirming Sylvester “Sly” Ezeokenwa as the party’s legitimate national chairman. In a landmark ruling delivered on Wednesday, the court dismissed the claim by Edozie Njoku, who had previously sought to challenge Ezeokenwa’s position.
In addition to recognizing Ezeokenwa’s leadership, the Supreme Court also imposed a N20 million fine on Edozie Njoku for filing what it deemed a frivolous lawsuit at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Bwari.
This judgment comes just days after the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that Njoku should not parade himself as the national chairman of APGA. Justice James Omotosho, who presided over the Federal High Court case, declared that there was no valid court order, including any Supreme Court ruling, that recognized Njoku as the party’s national chairman.
The legal dispute began after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) mistakenly removed the names of Ezeokenwa and his executive team from the INEC website, replacing them with Njoku’s faction on July 9, 2024. In response, Ezeokenwa and APGA filed a suit against INEC and Njoku, challenging the decision. The case was marked as FHC/ABJ/CS/966/2024.
Justice Omotosho, delivering the judgment, clarified that INEC had acted wrongly by recognizing Njoku’s leadership, as there was no court order to support such an action. The judge referenced the Supreme Court’s earlier ruling, which had clearly affirmed Ezeokenwa’s position as the rightful national chairman following the expiration of Chief Victor Oye’s tenure in 2023. A national convention held in Awka on May 31, 2023, elected Ezeokenwa and his team as the legitimate national executives of APGA, a decision monitored and documented by INEC.
The court ruled that INEC must now restore the names of Ezeokenwa and his executive team as the official leaders of the party. Furthermore, Justice Omotosho pointed out that the Supreme Court had already resolved the matter of the APGA leadership in a case between Njoku and Oye in March 2023, which affirmed that internal party affairs, including the election of national officers, were not subject to judicial intervention.
In closing, the judge expressed bewilderment at how INEC could have acted on what Njoku claimed was a court order when no such order existed. The ruling has effectively put an end to the leadership dispute within APGA, reinforcing Ezeokenwa’s role as the party’s national chairman and sanctioning Njoku for his unwarranted legal challenges.
