Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia , on Thursday expressed joy over his victory at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, saying that he had been spurred to do more. Ikpeazu, who said this while addressing newsmen at the Government House, Umuahia, said the victory reinvigorated him to serve the people with greater zeal.
He thanked God for the victory, saying that he dedicated the victory to the people of the state. He also expressed gratitude to the judiciary which, he said, had proved to be the hope of the common man.
“Without the judiciary of this country, what would have been the fate of the poor son of a teacher, who became governor at the mercy of God and people of Abia. Ikpeazu “The news before of us is a wonderful one and we are grateful to God for what He has done that our mandate has once again been affirmed by the Court of Appeal.
“This to us is a victory for the common people of Abia, who voted massively for us in 2015,” he said. He said that with the judgment he had been “re-invigorated in our service to Ndi-Abia without letting them down”.
Ikpeazu thanked the people for their support and steadfastness in prayer for his victory and urged them not to rest on their oars. The governor further charged the media to ensure that all arms of government work in consonance to promote the ideals of democracy. “The gains this country has achieved in terms of our democratic experience is too much for us to toy with.
“We can recover from our economic problems but we may never recover if we drawback on our gains in democratic governance,” he said. The Court of Appeal affirmed the election of Ikpeazu and quashed the June 26 judgment of Justice Okon Abang of the Abuja High Court.
Abang had ordered Ikpeazu to vacate office for Dr. Uche Ogah, who challenged Ikpeazu’s eligibility to contest the 2015 governorship election as the flag bearer of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). Following the judgment of the High Court for the immediate inauguration of Ogah as Abia governor, the Independent National Electoral Commission, issued him with the Certificate of Return.
Meanwhile, members of the Board of Trustees of PDP, led by their chairman, Sen. Walid Jibrin, who were at the Government House at the time the news of the judgment filtered in, congratulated the governor on his victory. Jibrin told newsmen that the party expected victory for Ikpeazu.
(Vanguard)
