Rivers crisis takes new twists as Chief Judge transfers Amaewhule’s defection case

Hon. Justice John Tsoho, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, has directed 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 directed that the cases be transferred from Federal High Court 4, Port Harcourt, which is presided over by Justice Steven Dalyop Pam, to Court Two, which is commanded 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.