The City of Law Firm has notified the Acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ilyasu Umar Damagun that former governor of Rivers State, Celestine Omehia, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara, and former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus would be attending the 98th National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the PDP slated for Thursday, April 18.
According to a post on X by Umar Sani, a spokesperson of the dissolved PDP Presidential Campaign Council, the exparte order of a federal high court barring them from attending the NEC meeting, has since lapsed.
The post reads: “The trio of Uche Secondus, Austin Opara, and Celestine Omehia are now to attend the PDP NEC meeting following a court of appeal grant of the stay of execution of the exparte order granted three plaintiffs seeking the nonparticipation of the trio in the forthcoming NEC meeting scheduled for the 18th April 2024 which order had since lapsed.
“In a letter written by the counsel to the trio CITY LAW FIRM addressed to the Acting National Chairman Ilyasu Umar Damagun through the office of the National Legal Adviser signed by Chief Ibrahim Eddy Mark a principal partner of the law firm, the letter chronicled what transpired in court and the appeal filed against the order for stay of execution which order has since lapsed.
“In a suit filed by three Rivers State Pdp members in the federal high court Abuja judicial division and marked as,
1. I Chisa Amadi vs Austin Adiele Opara FHC/ABJ/CS/438/2024
2. Titus Jones vs Uche Secondus FHC/ABJ/440/2024
3. Promise Wobisike vs Celestine Omehia FHC/ABJ/CS/436/2024
“The three members are contesting the competence of the affected defendants to participate in the forthcoming PDP NEC meeting, on the grounds of nonqualification Secondus and two others filed a motion for a stay of execution of the exparte order which was granted. The ground is now set for an explosive battle at NEC and set to determine who retains the soul of Rivers PDP.
“In another development, Uche Secondus has alerted stakeholders of the PDP of Wike’s plot to use the party to shore up his relevance within the Tinubu camp. In a statement issued by his spokesman Ike Abonyi, Secondus noted that Tinubu is wary of the antics of Wike who is bringing politics into the governance of the FCT. “I expect the founding fathers and other dedicated members to rise to the challenge and return this great party to its glory by ensuring as they always do at critical moments that nobody or group is greater or bigger than this party” Secondus enthused.”