The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has accused its sacked interim chairman, Tony Okocha, of trampling on the rule of law.
Through a statement issued on Friday by the state Public Relations Secretary, Darlington Nwawuju, the APC accused Okocha and his “payroll chief” of committing the same acts it had previously accused others of.
Nwawuju described Okocha as a liar masquerading as democracy.
He noted that despite the ruling by the Rivers State High Court, Mr. Okocha continued to claim to be the CTC chairman of the party.
He said: “Tony Okocha is trampling on the rule of law and he knows it. It was dancing.
“The concern is not only that we all see liars masquerading as democrats, but what is even worse is that these liars are also hypocrites.
“Despite the judgment of the Rivers State High Court, Mr. Okocha continued to claim to be the CTC chairman of the party.”
Naija News reports that Justice Shika Aprioku in his judgment reinstated the Emeka Beke-led Executive as the rightful leadership of the party in Rivers State.
The court issued a permanent injunction against the Okocha-led management committee, prohibiting it from interfering with the Beke-led executive committee until the end of its four-year term.
However, there are also reports that the Okocha-led APC has begun preparations for the state, local government and provincial assemblies scheduled to begin on Saturday, November 16, 2024.
Reacting to this development, Mr. Nwawuju noted that Mr. Okocha had appealed the court’s judgment dissolving the state management committee.
The statement further suggested that Mr. Okocha’s actions showed either a lack of confidence in the judiciary or overconfidence in the outcome of the appeal.
“We know that they have appealed to the Court of Appeal, but they still say they are not confident about what the outcome will be, or they are like hypocritical prophets and are putting blinders on Nigerians. Lady Justice has really been eliminated.
“Democracy depends on the rule of law. You can’t set new rules in the middle of a game,” he added.
