A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to produce documents relating to the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship primary in Rivers State.
The order followed an application by the plaintiff, Samuel Amatonjie, who is seeking certified true copies of the APC membership register submitted to INEC on April 20, 2026, and a letter notifying the commission of the party’s planned primaries.
The court also issued a subpoena directing the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Clerk to the National Assembly to produce certified copies of the House of Representatives Hansard covering April 2026 to June 2, 2026.
The documents are expected to support Amatonjie’s case, which questions the eligibility of the APC governorship candidate, Kingsley Ogundu-Chinda, following his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the APC.
When the matter came up on Wednesday, Amatonjie explained the importance of the documents to the case, prompting the presiding judge, Justice Muhammed Turaki, to grant the applications.
Meanwhile, counsel to the PDP, Paul Daudu, SAN, and counsel to Kingsley Ogundu-Chinda, Dike Udenna, complained about what they described as the late service of the plaintiff’s response to their preliminary objection challenging the court’s jurisdiction.
They asked for more time to study the response and file their replies.
After hearing from the lawyers, Justice Turaki directed all parties to file and exchange the necessary court processes before adjourning the case until December 10, 2026, for hearing.
Amatonjie approached the court seeking an interpretation of Section 68 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, over Ogundu-Chinda’s defection from the PDP to the APC.
He wants the court to determine whether a combined interpretation of Sections 177(c) and 68 of the Constitution permits Ogundu-Chinda to be recognised as having validly defected to the APC as of May 9, 2026, when he was screened and declared the party’s governorship candidate.
Speaking with journalists after the proceedings, PDP counsel, Daudu, SAN, explained why his team requested an adjournment.
He said, “The reason for the adjournment is that we have filed an objection of jurisdiction, challenging the jurisdiction of the court to hear this matter, which we had filed since 29th of September. But it was only yesterday that we were served with his response to our objection in jurisdiction.
“And we are entitled to almost seven days to respond. So, we want to take our time, study what he has filed and file our response.”
On his part, the plaintiff, Samuel Amatonjie, explained that the applications for the subpoenas were part of the steps taken to obtain documents he considers important to his case.
He said, “On the last adjourned date, preliminary objections were served on us and counter-affidavits.
“We are to respond to those preliminary objections and counter-affidavits.
“And as the defendants, they still needed time to make a reply to our own response.
“And also, on our part, we applied to the court, to my Lord, for a subpoena to be issued on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to produce certain documents, and also a subpoena to be issued on the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Clerk to the National Assembly for them also to produce certain documents.
“The subpoena that was issued on them is simply for them to produce the answer of the National Assembly.”
