By Onome Oghenetega
Mr. Moses Anaughe, the former member representing Ughelli North Constituency II in the Delta State House of Assembly on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) says the Appeal Court sitting in Benin removed him owing to the pre-election dispute which rocked the APC prior to the March 9 election.
Anaughe said though he does not agreed with the decision of the appellate court, he has accepted the judgement in good faith.
The Court of Appeal sitting in Benin, Edo State, had earlier on Saturday sacked him as the lawmaker representing Ughelli North Constituency ll at the Delta State House of Assembly.
However, the court declared Prince Eric Oharisi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the rightful winner of the March 9 State Houses of Assembly Election in the area.
Reacting to the judgement, Anaughe in a statement, blamed his removal on internal wrangling within the APC which led to unlawful substitution of his name as the authentic winner of the primaries of the party.
According to him, “Today, the Court of Appeal sitting in Benin gave two judgements on the Ughelli North Constituency II, House of Assembly election held on March 9, 2019.
“While I won the appeal filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP), I lost my appeal against the ruling of the tribunal which had ruled that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has no candidate in the election due to pre-election intra-party disputes and declared Hon. Eric Oharisi of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner.
“While I strongly disagree with the Court’s judgement, I accept the finality of this outcome in good faith.”
The sacked lawmaker while expressing deep regret over the judgement, appealed to his supporters and members of the APC in the area to accept the ruling “in good faith” and work for a greater party.
He thanked the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege and members of the APC for their continued support during the election and legal tussle.
“Let me express my gratitude to all those who supported me and supported the cause for which we have fought. In particular, I wish to thank my mentor and boss, the Deputy President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege for his unflinching support. I also want to thank all the people of Ughelli Constituency II for their support for the APC during the election.
“And I am also thankful to my campaign team for their hard work that brought us so close to finish line. I know you all and all my supporters are disappointed. Do not despair, but have solace in the fact that we fought a good fight.
“The loss of the seat by APC in this way is something that should never happen again. It is my sincere hope that Delta APC has learnt its lesson and never again will it unlawfully substitute the name of the rightful winner of its primaries.
“Just as we fight hard when the stakes are high, let us all in the constituency come together now that the contest is over and move our constituency forward for the good of our people”, the statement further added.
