14 things Obono-Obla said about latest court order on C'River APC guber candidate

Chairman, Special Presidential Panel on Recovery of Public Asset, Chief Okoi Obono-obla has listed 14 things he has observed after studying the yesterday's Abuja Federal High Court order concerning the candidates of APC in Cross River State.

Obono-obla, a veteran legal practitioner and politician who is also the Senior Special Assistant on Prosecution to the President amongst other things said that the order by Justice I.E Ekwo has not changed anything as Sen. John Owan Enoh remains the governorship candidate of the party in the state.

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I have just seen the enrolled Order of the Federal High Court in FHC/ABJ/CS/1222/2018 presided over by Honourable Justice I.E Ekwo concerning a suit filed by Hon. Godwin Etim John & co against the All Progressives Congress and the Independent National Electoral Commission dated the 31 January 2019 . The Learned Trial Judge ordered as follows thus:

I. An Order is hereby made for the res to be preserved , therefore , all parties are to maintain the status quo ante pending the determination of this matter.

2. Case reverts to 5th February , 2019 for the interlocutory application and the substantive matter.

I fervently believe that the Order has not the changed the status quo on the folowing grounds thus:

1. INEC published the list of National Assembly candidates of APC from Cross River State on the 17 January 2019;

2. INEC published on the 30 January 2019  the list of governorship candidates of the APC in States where governorship election will hold on the 2nd March 2019 including the name of Senator John Owan-Enoh, APC governorship candidate ;

3. The Order is to the effect that the res should be preserved, all parties are to maintain the status quo ante pending the determination of the substantive matter.

4. What is res?  It simply means the subject matter of the court action;

5. What is status quo ante? It means the previously existing state of affairs before the parties went to Court;

6. The previously existing state affairs were that the name of Senator John Owan-Enoh was submitted by APC and it published by INEC as the flag bearer of the party for Governorship election in Cross River State scheduled for the 2 March 2019;

7. Most importantly, since Senator John Owan-Enoh is not a defendant in the case, the Order doesn't affect his position in any way.

8. In Law, an Order is only binding on somebody is made a Party in the case. In this case, Senator John Owan-Enoh is NOT a Party in that case.

9. All the candidates of the APC Cross River State, whose names were submitted why the Party to INEC and whose names were published by INEC on the 17 January 2019 remains the candidates of APC for the National Assembly election;

10. The Order is not binding on all the candidates of the Party for the National Assembly election because they were not joined as defendants in the case;

11. All  the candidates for the State Assembly election whose names were submitted why the Party to INEC and whose names were published by INEC on the 30 January 2019 remain the candidates of APC for the State Assembly election in Cross River State scheduled for 2 March 2019;

12. The Order is not binding on all the candidates of the Party for the State Assembly election because they were not joined as defendants in the case;

13. The Order dated the 31st January 2019 came late after INEC had published its lists for the National Assembly on the 17 January 2019, and Governorship and State Assembly on the 30 January 2019 respectively.

14. Assuming (without conceding),  the said Order is a restraining Order of Injunction it is otiose and made in vain because the acts have been concluded on the 17 January 2019 and 30 January 2019 respectively. In Law, an injunction cannot lie for an act that has taken place or concluded.