News
Tinubu: How INEC broke its own laws – Amadi *We’re waiting for them in court – APC
Those planning to launch legal offensive Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, who was announced as the President-elect on Wednesday by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), should be ready for the bulwark from the team of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which has vowed to defend their mandate with everything possible.
This is coming against the backdrop of anticipation that Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and Atiku Abubakar, that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), could be going to court to challenge the outcome of the election, particularly the allegation that INEC breached parts of its own laws.
Sam Amadi, former Chairman of the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), was one of those who carpeted INEC flouting its own laws by not only failing to upload the results of the election from the polling booths, but not adhering to the provision requiring that a candidate who did not win 25 per cent in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), would not be qualify to be declared the winner no matter the performance elsewhere.
“INEC failed despite some positive side of the election. In 2019, there was a debate around server. PDP alleged they were rigged out because their votes in the server were not captured. But the courts dismissed that and we fought for the Electoral Act.
“Now, the Electoral Act said in section 60 that you have to upload the results immediately. Clause 38 issued by INEC, makes it a crime for any electoral officer not to do so. So, what I cannot understand is why INEC which has test-run this – this is the main innovation in this Electoral Act. Why do we have this delay that has now shrouded this in all kinds of problems?
My worry, is that they have not improved since 2015. In 2015, we had elections in almost everywhere. In 2023, in my own local government in Ngor Okpala, in one polling units, two only had elections. The constitution did not intend that we should disenfranchise the citizens and then come to the collation centre and call the election for the person who won. The constitution intends, at least in its minimum requirement that everybody votes, who is entitled to vote.
“There are two things here, the gross failure of logistics. Were they programmed to fail or was it just circumstances? BVAS or no BVAS. BVAS didn’t fail. What failed were people who refused to trigger those processes. I can’t wrap my head around this. We’re talking about basic electoral issues like being there to ensure that people vote.”
Amadi, a lecturer at Base University Abuja, who made his views known on Monday as a guest of Arise TV, returned on Wednesday with a more damning verdict, saying that the inability of the commission to upload the results throughout the period of collation and announcement of the results, amounted to breaking its own laws.
Stressing that the commission had since been conferred with legislative muscle to make its own rules and judicial powers to sit and interpret how best to apply such rules and executive function of actually applying them, he said it was that once such rules had become public, the commission would be in breach by not following the process.
He argued that the proper thing to do in the instant case was for the commission, which had come out with the guidelines for voting and transmission of the results was to return to the Nigerian people with a new guideline if it discovered that it could no longer do so.
He also aligned himself to the argument that Abuja, being a special creation, with a special status as a mini-Nigeria, where all tribes were supposed to be represented, the provision of securing 25 per cent victory for a presidential candidate was mandatory, as the framers of the Nigerian constitution, desired it to achieve that purpose.
But Babatunde Ogala (SAN), the National Collation agent, who represented the APC at the National Collation Centre (NCC), where all the election results were gathered, said that while the party was extending its hands of fellowship to all the candidates and their opponents in Saturday’s presidential election, it would guide the mandate given to party jealously and would be ready to meet anybody in court for that purpose.
Ogala, who is a former National Legal Adviser of the APC, who spoke shortly after the APC candidate Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was declared winner, while defending the outcome of the election, said Tinubu was well prepared for the job of the President with a well cut out manifesto of renewed hope.
Assuring Nigerians that he would hit the ground running from day one, Ogala, who commended Nigerians for making the right choice said: “The job has started, he is going to hit the ground running. Nigerians has just made the best decision for this country at this time. They have elected a unifier, a strategist,a mentor of men, an astute administrator.
“He is experienced and you have seen his manifesto of renewed hope which is well laid out. It is tye best for this country at this time. From r our opponents, what we can simply say is that they are all winners in this process.
“For Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the PDP, Peter Obi of the Labour Party and all those who participated, we are all joint winners. We are joint owners and enjoined them to come on board and join Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to move this country forward.”
News
BREAKING: All clear for Tinubu! S’Court dismisses PDP’s double nomination suit *Says, PDP a busy-body
For being a meddlesome interloper and a busy-body in bringing a case that was none of its business, the Supreme Court, on Friday slammed a N2million fine on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), over its suit demanding that the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the February 25 presidential election be vitiated.
The main opposition party, had claimed that Kashim Shettima, being a candidate in a Senatorial election in Borno and as well as the running mate to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the APC presidential candidate in the election, amounted to double Nomination, which is forbidden by the law.
Based on that, the prayed the apex court to declare the ticket null and void and the votes recorded for it in the election, through which they were declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), wasted, a prayer, which if it had succeeded, would pave the way for Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of the party in the election to take over from Tinubu as the 16th President on Monday, when he is due to be inaugurated.
But the court, while dismissing the prayers, which originated from the Federal High Court Abuja, and travelled through the Court of Appeal, before it, agreeing with the positions of the lower courts which dismissed them on the ground of lacking in locus standi to institute the case.
But, Justice Adamu Jauro who read the Judgement, not only held that the PDP acted as meddlesome Interloper and a busy body as it is an internal affair of the APC, ordered the main opposition party to pay N2milllion, for its troubles, after establishing that its arguments tended to misleading the court, which was “sad”.
The court, which said it was aware of the case of Uche Nwosu, former governorship candidate in Imo State, the court, held that it did not applay in the instant case, as it agreed that Shettima withdrew his senate nomination on 6th July 2022 and was subsequently replaced and therefore, was no longer a candidate for the Senate before he picked up the running mate ticket, thus, making the allegation of multiple nomination untenable.
On the other hand, the court, held that Nwosu in his case, got nominated by two political parties for different positions, and having not being on all fours, PDP suit, was bound to fail right from the trial court, to the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court.
Accusing the PDP of attempts to use the social media to set a trap for the apex court to blackmail it, which he said was “painful, unfortunate and uncalled for,” the court said a political party had no right to challenge the action of another party, or the decision of INEC, in respect of another party, adding that for a person to have locus standi to challenge the nomination process of a political party, the person must be a neutral person and an aspirant to that position, and a member of the party.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo is worried that the level of love Nigerians abroad share among themselves is not replicated at home, adding that a situation where they are quick to become friends outside and enemies at home, must be stop. The former President, who acknowledged how Nigerians in the diaspora were making the country proud in their different areas of endeavour, told participants at an evening reception held at New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA, that Nigerians in the diaspora must conduct themselves as good citizens wherever they domiciled.
Obasanjo, whose views were captured in a statement by, Kehinde Akinyemi, his spokesman, expressed satisfaction over the unity exhibited among Nigerians in the United States of America, urging them to reciprocate such togetherness when they are back home.
The former President, said to have spoken on behalf of a delegation of eminent traditional leaders and academics that included the Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Oba Saka Matemilola, was quoted as saying: “Nigerian nationals are often very united when they are abroad, but something else when they return to the country, therefore, I want to urge all to be good citizens, not only where you are, but when also you come home to Nigeria.”
The exchange of handshakes between veteran actors Pete Edochie and Kanayo O. Kanayo with Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyey Ogunwusi Enitan, has spurred a flurry of reactions on social media, The Nation, is reporting.
The paper, which reviewed the viral video shared on Thursday, where Edochie and Kanayo approached Ooni’s table at Elizabeth Jack Rich’s 40th birthday party on Tuesday and exchanged Igbo “cultural” handshakes with the monarch, acknowledged the different meanings being read into it.
Social media users on Twitter took to the comment section of the video with some knocking the actors for disrespecting the tradition by exchanging handshakes with the monarch, while others praised Ooni for showing respect to the Igbo culture.
Man of Letters said: “Igbakeji Oorisa?! It’s acceptable that he received the cross-culture respect handshake with Pete Edochie because the man Pete carry, but what’s his excuse for doing it with Kanayo O Kanayo??”
Kelvin Odanz said. “Is this ceremony holding in the Ooni palace? I mean, if an Igbo man (from a culture that doesn’t bow to another man) meets the Ooni in the UK for instance, is it disrespectful if he chooses to greet the respected Oba in a way he was brought up to respect dignitaries?”
Another user Onyemauchi tweeted: “This man supposed be King for him community”
Another tweep tracesorba wrote: “Igbos don’t bow down to any man, An evolved or wise man is their our own Chi.”
BREAKING: All clear for Tinubu! S’Court dismisses PDP’s double nomination suit *Says, PDP a busy-body
Nigerians must allow the love they share abroad resonate at home – Obasanjo
Uproar, social media exchange of fire, over Ooni’s handshake with Pete Edochie, KOK
In the military, INEC boss and his team would be executed – Bode George *Why put Tinubu’s boy in charge of IT?
I’ve paid a price for joining Obi to rescue Nigeria – Datti-Ahmed *Weeps on TV
BREAKING: Sorry, you can’t contest 2023 election, Atiku tells Tinubu
