A Port Harcourt based legal Practitioner, Ime Umanah, had said contrary to reports, the court has not barred Governor Godwin Obaseki from participation in the primaries of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for Edo governorship election.
According to him, a perusal of the court documents will also indicate that no judgment has been given in the suit.
Umanah said, “I have read media reports that the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State has restrained the Governor of Edo State from participating in the primaries of the PDP scheduled to hold on Thursday.
“The report is to say the least, misleading and incorrect, judging from the enrolled order which I have attached here.
“A careful perusal of the Order would reveal that what the Court granted was an order for substituted service of the processes on the Defendants/Respondents while also granting an accelerated hearing of the matter.
“The motion of notice was consequently adjourned to 24th day of June, 2020 for hearing.”
He also claimed that while is it apparent on the face of the order that the applicants actually prayed for an interim injunction in their ex-parte motion, the court did not grant that aspect of their prayers.
“It is important for non lawyers to always seek for guidance on the interpretation of court orders as what is important in an order is the part which comes after this:
“Every other thing said at the beginning or preamble of the enrolled order, does not represent the order of the Court but only provides a background for the eventual orders.
“What that means is that in the circumstance, Obaseki and all other parties would simply file their counter affidavits and written addresses today and the matter would be heard tomorrow and possibly decided same day (in view of the urgency).
“Let’s be properly guided please, unless there is any other order which I have not seen”.
