The cases were instituted against Amaewhule and 24 lawmakers in Rivers State House of Assembly on their defection to the APC.
By Jeffrey Agbo
The cases challenging the defection of 25 state lawmakers in Rivers State from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) have been transferred from Federal High Court 4, Port Harcourt, presided over by Justice Steven Pam, to court 2 controlled by Justice E. O. Obele.
This followed a petition by a defendant in the matter, Martins Amaewhule, to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court Justice John Tsoho, demanding that the cases against him be transferred to another court.
The cases are one instituted by Boot Party and others as plaintiffs in suit number FHC/PHC/269/2024 and another by a civil society organisation in the state against Amaewhule and others, all on the defection of the defendants to the APC.
When the court resumed on Monday for hearing, it was confronted with a petition signed by Amaewhule addressed to Justice Tsoho, seeking the case to be reassigned to another court.
The Presiding Judge, Justice Steven Pam, who read the petition in the open court, noted that the petitioner, Amaewhule, was asking the chief judge of the High Court to stop the hearing process following the petition.
READ ALSO:
Rivers court bars Amaewhule, 24 others from parading as lawmakers
When the petition was read, counsel for Boot Party, Reuben Wanogho, informed the court that the petition was aimed at arresting the ongoing case and urged the court to ignore it.
But counsel for the 1st to 25th defendants in the suit, Ferdinand Orbi (SAN), denied knowledge of the petition by his client, prayed the court to adhere to the petition and stop further proceeding if the letter was addressed to the chief judge of the court.
However, Justice Pam noted that in the first instance the petitioner (Amaewhule) has no motion, counter affidavit before him and that he is not yet known in the case.
Pam noted that the petitioner has not copied his petition on the plaintiffs, noting the court would have no other option than to ignore the petition and move on with hearing of motions for joinder.
