PDP Crisis: Sheriff’s Faction Withdraws Petition Against Appeal Court Judges

The Ali Modu Sherif-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party has expressed regret on the petition it wrote against the Justice Ibrahim Saulawa-led panel of the Court of Appeal in Abuja in the heat of the legal battle for the party’s ticket for the Ondo State governorship election held in November, 2016.
The PDP faction stated in a letter, dated January 31, 2017, and addressed to the acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, that it took the decision to withdraw the petition after “a more sober reflection.”

The letter, titled, ‘Letter of withdrawal of petition dated November 17, 2016,’ was signed by two officials of the Sheriff-led faction of the PDP — the National Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo, and the acting National Legal Adviser, Mr. Bashir Maidugu.

The letter read in part, “With utmost humility and greatest respect to Your Lordship, we write in respect of our earlier petition, dated November 17, 2016, in which we urged Your Lordship to direct the honourable President of the Court of Appeal to instruct the Justice Ibrahim Saulawa-led panel of Justices to stop all further proceedings in respect of appeal with number CA/A/551/2016 wherein judgment had been delivered.

“Upon a more sober reflection, we humbly apply to withdraw the said petition against the Justices and regret any inconvenience same may have occasioned on all affected parties.

“Accept our highest regards always.”

The Justice Saulawa panel had, in its judgment, delivered on November 23, 2016, nullified an earlier verdict of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognise Mr. Jimoh Ibrahim, belonging to the Sheriff faction, as the authentic governorship candidate of the PDP in Ondo State.

The Court of Appeal, in its judgment, retrieved the ticket from Ibrahim and returned it to Mr. Eyitayo Jegede, who belonged to the rival Ahmed Makarfi-led faction.

Called from ThePunch