Abuja high court suspends Adams Oshiomhole as APC chairman pending hearing of substantive case

ADAMS Oshiomhole has been suspended as the chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) after an Abuja high court ruled that he should stand down pending the determination of a substantive suit seeking his permanent removal from office.

In a dramatic development this morning, a Federal Capital Territory high court presided over by Justice Danlami Senchi, asked Mr Oshiomhole to step down until a seek filed by the Edo State chapter of the party is heard. Last November, the Edo State chapter of the APC suspended Mr Oshiomhole but he has ignored the development, forcing some party members to file a legal; suit against him, saying the chairman must honour the decision.

There have been calls from sections of the APC for Mr Oshiomhole to resign following the decision by the Edo State chapter of the party. Mr Oshiomhole was suspended over his alleged role in the crisis rocking the party in the state that has resulted in infighting between two factions, with one loyal to him and the other to Governor Godwin Obaseki.

According to Aslem Ojezua, the chairman of the Edo State chapter of the APC, Mr Oshiomhole's suspension followed a vote of no confidence passed in him by the chairmen of the party in the 18 local government areas of the state. Last month, Mustapha Salihu, the APC national vice chairman for the northeast, said Mr Oshiomhole was not fit to be called the national chairman, following his suspension by the party’s Edo State chapter.

Mr Salihu said: “We also want to follow up with the suspension of the national chairman. As we speak, is he is fit to be a national chairman or whether that court order is still subsisting which before the end of today, I will let you know."

Mr Oshiomhole, however, is insisting his accomplishments since assuming the mantle of leadership in 2018 did not warrant the calls for his resignation. He wondered why some people would demand his resignation in spite of the electoral successes recorded before and after the 2019 general elections.

He said the National Working Committee under his leadership reclaimed Ekiti State and retained Osun State before the 2019 general elections. Mr  Oshiomhole added that President Muhammadu Buhari also garnered more votes to defeat his challenger in the 2019 presidential election than in 2015.