They Don't Want Me To Be The PDP Spokesman, Metuh Tells CJN

Former National Publicity Secretary of the People's Democratic Party, PDP, Olisa Metuh has said that his opponents are ploting to stop him from re-contesting the position.

Mr. Metuh said this in a petition to the chief justice of Nigeria Aloma Mukhtar, He said the opponents were planning to procure fraudulent court orders with a view to preventing him from presenting himself as a candidate for the position during the convention.

The former PDP spokesman was among the 16 members of the National Working Committee, NWC, who resigned their positions in June following the report of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, faulting their election in the March 2012 convention.

In the petition, Mr. Metuh said one of his challengers whom he did not name was desperately resorting to the use of the judiciary to disqualify him. He claimed the aspirant had embarked on forum shopping and institution of suits using surrogates as plaintiffs. He therefore asked the CJN to intervene and abort the apparent attempt by the fellow aspirant to abuse the court process.

“My Lord, this aspirant first of all commenced a Suit at the Federal Capital Territory High Court (FCTHC) before Honourable Justice O.A Musa in Suit No CV/3788/2013. Using Surrogates as the Plaintiffs, he obtained an Exparte Order restraining me from contesting the election. When I sought to strike out the Suit and indeed filed my processes to that effect, the Counsel for the Plaintiffs quickly withdrew the Suit,” Mr. Metuh said in the petition.

“Upon withdrawal of the Suit, the same man who has had the ignoble practice of jumping from one political party to another in search of a platform to ‘contest’ election has now caused the same FCTHC Suit (which has been struck out) with the same set of Defendants but using another set of Surrogates to be filed at the Anambra High Court sitting in Awka.

“This new Suit (in Awka, Anambra State is A/241/2013 between CHIEF ILOANYA and ANOR v. P.D.P & ORS) is ostensibly to have me disqualified from contesting the election for reasons that failed him in the previous Suit at the Abuja High Court.

The said Sponsor has embarked on his usual boast that the high Court in Awka will seal my fate in the forthcoming election and that by the time a restraining Order is granted him on or before 29/8/13, it will be too late for me to set it aside.”