By Suleiman Anyalewechi
Activities at the ongoing Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Conference, were on Monday, August 25,2025 somewhat overshadowed by the protest match held by the people of Enugu South I State Constituency ,to draw attention to the the plights of Bar.Bright Ngene winner of Enugu South state Constituency re-run ,who is presently languishing in jail .
The Source reports that Ngene of the Labour Party LP was on Tuesday August 19 declared winner of the re-run polls conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC in Enugu South I State Constituency on Saturday August 16 .
Instructively,he was declared winner while still in Custodial Centre where he is serving a 7-year jail term slammed on him by an Enugu South Magistrate Court in July 2024 in connection with the communal clashes that erupted in Akwuke Community over missing N15 million public funds
The case was first said to have been referred to an Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee ,for a peaceful settlement at on set in 2017 .
However , following events post-2023 general elections ,in which Ngene an LP candidate emerged victorious in the Enugu South I State Constituency contest ,the matter was revived and brought before an Enugu South Magistrate Court ,where he was allegedly summarily convicted and sentenced .
But in even jail, all attempts so far made to push Ngene out of subsequent court-ordered re-runs proved abortive.
The August 16 ,2025 exercise which Ngene still won ,was the third in the series of court-ordered re-runs in the Constituency since March 2023 .
Declaring Ngene the winner ,of the re-run polls ,the INEC Commissioner for Voter Education Sam Olumekun stated that Ngene polled the highest number of votes to defeat his closet rival from the Peoples Democratic party PDP .
” Two re-run elections by order of the Election Appeal Tribunal were held in Enugu and Kano states .
” After previous disruptions of the elections in the two states by violence and thuggery, the exercise have now been concluded .
” For the Enugu South Constituency , Ngene Bright Emeka of the Labour Party LP was declared winner .
” Certificate of Return would be presented to the successful candidates ,on August 21 and 22 ,2025 in Abuja and state offices respectively.” Olumekun stated.
But as at the time of reporting, the Electoral Umpire was yet to issue Ngene with his Certificate of Return, owing to his peculiar case of being a prison inmate.
All those declared winner ,in the August 16 by-elections and re-run polls held across 12 states of the country have all been issued with their Certificates of Return, except Ngene
At the NBA Enugu Conference the protesters in their numbers ,with various placards , while calling for the intervention of the umbrella body of legal practitioners in the country , insisted on the innocence of Ngene , himself a practicing lawyer .
Addressing the media ,leader of the protesters , Benedict Kachukwu said that Ngene’s travails were orchestrated and politically motivated by some forces who are bent on undoing and keeping him out of circulation.
He alleged that Ngene at the Magistrate Court level was never given a fair hearing,but was hurriedly convicted and sentenced ,to satisfy the wishes of some interested forces .
More disturbing however , according to Kachukwu is that all efforts to appeal Ngene’s conviction since 2024 at the High Court have so far been frustrated.
” As at this moment ,two Judges have so far recused themselves from the appeal filed by Ngene against his conviction at the state High Court .
In fact ,the High Court has continued to frustrate the hearing of the appeal since 2024 ,with Ngene languishing in jail ,.
We have the strong belief that the whole thing is a deliberate ploy to continue to keep Ngene out of circulation.
We are here to appeal to the NBA ,to rise to the occasion and defend not just one of their own ,but to save the Judiciary from being used to punish innocent people , owing to differences in political affiliations” Kachukwu stated
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