Tsoho, has ordered the transfer of the cases challenging the defection of the
25 state lawmakers in Rivers State from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to
the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Tsoho ordered that the cases be transferred from Federal
High Court 4, Port Harcourt, presided over by Justice Steven Dalyop Pam, to
Court Two headed by Justice E. O. Obele.
The CJ ordered the transfer of the case following a petition
by a defendant in the matter, Hon. Martins Amaewhule, demanding that the cases
against him be transferred to another court.
The cases are one instituted by the BOOT Party and others as
plaintiffs in suit number FHC/PHC/269/2024 and another by civil society
organisations in the state against Amaewhule and others, all on the defection
of the defendants to APC.
When the court resumed on Monday for hearing, it was
confronted with a petition signed by Martin Amaewhule addressed to the Chief
Judge of the Federal High Court, Hon. Justice John Tsoho, seeking the case to
be reassigned to another court.
The presiding judge, Justice Steven Dalyop Pam, who read the
petition in the open court, had noted that the petitioner, Amaewhule, was praying
to the CJ of the High Court to stop the hearing process following the petition.
When the petition was read, counsel for the plaintiff, BOOT
Party, Mr 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, denied knowledge of the petition by his client and prayed the
court to adhere to the petition and stop further proceeding if the letter was
addressed to the CJ of the court.
However, the presiding judge, Justice Pam, noted that in the
first instance, the petitioner (Amaewhule) has no motion, or counter affidavit
before him and that he is not yet known in the case.
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