Appeal Court fixes Feb. 7 for hearing on Peter Obi’s impeachment
The Court of Appeal yesterday in Enugu fixed Feb. 7 for the hearing of the appeal filed by 17 Anambra lawmakers against the invalidation of Governor Peter Obi’s impeachment.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that when the case came up for mention, counsel to the appellants, Mrs. Quinett Nwanem, requested that the court should grant her 40-days to enable her prepare her submissions.
She conceded that she would have applied for a 60 day-period but decided to ask for only 40 days because of the urgency of the matter.
Counsel to Obi, Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), on the other hand, had brought three motions before the court.
Ikpeazu had prayed the court to allow the appeal to be based on oral submissions, since all the records were before the court.
He also asked the court to fast-track the hearing of the case, while abridging the court rules to enable a speedy disposal of the case.
However, the court, presided over by Justice James Ogebe, dismissed Nwanem’s request of a 40 day-period, saying that the case required a speedy adjudication.
Besides, Ogebe rejected Ikpeazu’s prayer for the case to be based on oral submissions and fixed Feb, 7 for the hearing of the appeal.
NAN recalls that an Awka High Court, presided over by Justice Umegbolu Nri-Ezedi, had quashed the impeachment of Obi by the 17 legislators on Dec. 28 last year.
The lawmakers consequently filed an appeal against the judgment.