The Abuja High Court has strongly declared the expulsion of Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) illegal and described the action as “rascality taken too far” by a faction within the party.
Hon. Ugochinyere, who represents Ideato North/South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and serves as the Opposition Lawmakers Coalition spokesman, was reportedly expelled by a group claiming to be from the PDP’s pro-Wike/Anyanwu faction. This group released a press statement and documents to back their claim.
However, the court, led by Justice Iheme, found that this expulsion was done by impostors acting outside the PDP’s constitution and without proper authority. The judge ruled that only the PDP’s National Executive Committee (NEC) has the power to discipline or expel a sitting member of the National Assembly like Ugochinyere.
In fact, the PDP headquarters and NEC had clearly denied any involvement in the expulsion, calling the documents and actions “baseless” and “illegal.” The court emphasized that the so-called expulsion notice was worthless and carried no legal weight.
The judgment highlighted that the Ward Executive Committee, which claimed to expel Ugochinyere, overstepped its powers and violated the party’s rules. The court further explained that since the proper process wasn’t followed, the issue of fair hearing did not even arise.
Party supporters have welcomed the ruling, calling it a significant blow to the faction that tried to silence Ugochinyere and use the fake expulsion to challenge his seat in the House of Representatives.
With this decision, Ugochinyere remains a proud member of the PDP and a sitting lawmaker representing his constituency.
