Appeal Court sacks Araraume as Imo north APC candidate

Ifeanyi Araraume

A Court of Appeal in Owerri, Imo State has sacked Senator Ifeanyi Araraume from contesting Imo North bye-election as candidate of the All Progressives Congress.

Justice Uchechukwu Onyemenam gave the judgement on Friday, barely 24 hours to the bye-election which holds on Saturday in the 64 wards across the six local government areas.

The court also declared Frank Ibezim as the authentic candidate of the APC ahead of the election.

He faulted the November 6 judgment of a Federal High Court which sacked Ibezim and announced Araraume who represented the district between 1999 and 2007 as the rightful winner of APC primary election.

The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to immediately enlist Ibezim as the candidate of the party for the bye-election.

He said the revalidation of the candidacy of Ibezim was in tandem with the electoral act, having won the APC primary in September.