After 8 Months, Abia Speaker Swears In Aba North Assembly Member Who Got Judgment Against LP

Eight months after he was declared the authentic winner of the Aba North state constituency seat in the Abia State House of Assembly by the Court of Appeal, the speaker of the Assembly, Mr Emmanuel Emeruwa, has sworn in Uzodike Aaron as a member of the House.

Following Uzodike’s inauguration, the PDP now has 12 members, LP 11 and APC 1.

The Court of Appeal had on November 27, 2023, nullified the election of Destiny Nwagwu of the Labour Party and declared Uzodike of the PDP as the authentic winner of the March 18 state Assembly poll for Aba North state constituency.

However, Uzodike’s swearing became a subject of contention between the ruling Labour Party and the PDP in the state. The Speaker, Emmanuel Emeruwa, had attributed the delay to a court order that restrained him from swearing in the new member.

On its part, the PDP insisted that there was no court order restraining the swearing-in as the then lawmaker-elect had received a certificate of return from INEC and fulfilled other formalities necessary for the swearing-in. The PDP also accused Governor Alex Otti of instructing the speaker not to swear in Uzodike as a member of the Assembly.

Meanwhile, the PDP has congratulated Uzodike on his inauguration as the member representing Aba North constituency in the state House of Assembly.

In a statement by the PDP’s acting state publicity secretary, Elder Amah Abraham, the party described Uzodike’s inauguration after several months of delay as a significant milestone in democracy’s journey to perfection.

It also commended the speaker for what it described as “waking up from slumber and demonstrating obedience and adherence to the rule of law.”

The party urged the speaker to urgently release all entitlements owed to Uzodike for the past 15 months, stressing that the prompt payment of the entitlements will enable him to execute his duties and fulfill the promises made to the people of Aba North state constituency.

Vanguard