The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, who stepped aside from his position on Tuesday, is set to fight his suspension by a Benue State High Court, Makurdi on Monday.
Ayu’s Special Assistant on Communication, Simon Imobo-tswam, disclosed this to our correspondent shortly after the party announced the appointment of the Deputy National Chairman, (North), Umar Damagum Ayu as the acting national chairman.
He said Ayu would challenge the suspension order in court.
The Igorov ward executive committee in the Gboko Local Government Area of Benue State had on Sunday suspended Ayu for alleged anti-party activities and for failing to pay his membership dues.
In the aftermath of the suspension, the Benue State court restrained Ayu from parading himself as the chairman of the party following a suit filed by a former aide to the state governor, Conrad Utaan.
Ayu and the PDP were listed as the first and second respondents, respectively.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the case has been adjourned till April 17 for a hearing.
Recall that a Makurdi High Court presided over by Justice Wilfred Kpochi had issued an interim order restraining Dr. Iyorchia Ayu from “parading himself as the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.”
The order of the court issued Monday followed an ex-parte application brought before the court by a PDP stalwart, Mr. Conrad Utaan against Dr. Ayu and the PDP, in a suit No MHC/85/2023.
The application was supported by a 15 paragraph affidavit and three exhibits including the applicant’s PDP membership card, receipt of payment of dues and a copy of the resolution of the PDP Executive of the Igyorov Council Ward of Gboko Local Government Area, LGA, suspending Dr. Ayu.
The plaintiff in the application argued that the National Chairman should cease to operate in that capacity “having lost membership of the party, pending the hearng and determination of Motion on Notice already filed.”
In his ruling, Justice Kpochi held that the court, after listening to the plaintiff’s counsel move the application “and upon a dispassionate consideration of the facts placed before me in the pool of the affidavit evidence, and again, upon the
consideration of the issues distilled in the written address by the plaintiff’s counsel, it is my candid view that this is a proper case to grant the interim injunction as craved. Consequently, this application Is hereby granted in terms of the reliefs captured in the motion papers as herein before reproduced. It is so ordered.”
Justice Ikpochi adjourned the matter to April 17, 2023 for hearing.
TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that On October 31 2021, Ayu emerged as the new National Chairman of PDP.
He, as a consensus candidate for the position, took over the leadership of the main opposition party alongside 20 others elected into various positions within the PDP National Working Committee.
