Federal High Court Strikes Out Treason Charges Against Sen.John Udoedehe By Governor Godswill Akpabio.

A federal high court sitting in Abuja has quashed the treason charges filed against Senator John Udoedehe by Godswill Akpabio and members of his administration over the incident of election violence, which resulted in the destruction of several properties owned by the government on April 22, 2010.
The sitting judge blamed Akpabio’s administration for bringing to his court a case which the Attorney General and the lawyers in the state’s Ministry of Justice have known all along that it lacked merits and without any shred of evidence that could connect the Senator to the incident.
there were reports of celebration and jubilation at Uyo by supporters of the Senator. Sources say the youths took over popular joints in the state, drinking, partying, and rejoicing over the ruling issued by the court.

It could be recalled that during the 2010-2011 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State, some belligerent indigents, such as Commissioner Emmanuel Enoidem, of Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District, had issued a state-wide warning barring candidates who were not of Annang extraction from campaigning in their communities. When Senator Udoedehe ignored the warning and drove to Ikot Ekpene for a campaign rally, he was attacked by supporters of Akpabio—he narrowly escaped being lynched, while several of his supporters were killed.

The incident immediately sparked violence, which resulted in the burning of several government-owned vehicles and properties that belonged to private citizens. In less than 24 hours of the incident, without any shred of evidence, such a police report or committee findings, Godswill Akpabio blamed his opponent, Senator Udoedehe, for the violence and subsequently filed a complaint with the Nigerian Police.

When Senator Udoedehe was invited for questioning by the Nigerian Police in Abuja, he was detained and taken to the court and charged for sedition and treason. He was eventually transferred to stand trial at Uyo, but was released on bail. His legal team eventually succeeded in having the case moved for trial at Abuja.
Today, he was acquitted of all charges by a court of competent jurisdiction.