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David Lyon: The Governor that Never Was
By Eric Elezuo
“If you have tears, prepare to shed them now…”
The above expression by Mark Antony in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar came to mind as the Supreme Court declared its landmark judgment which threw the entire nation into a frenzy and shock, depending on your side of the divide. It ruled that the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), My David Lyon, who was elected governor of Bayelsa State in November 2019 will no longer be governor. This was barely 24 hours to his inauguration, and even as the former governor-elect was rehearsing for the ill-fated inauguration.
A five-member panel of the apex court led by Justice Mary Odili nullified the election of Mr Lyon on the grounds that his deputy, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, presented false information to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in aid of his qualification for the governorship election in the state held on November 16, 2019.
In the judgment, delivered by Justice Ejembi Eko, the final arbiter ordered INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to Lyon and Degi-Eremienyo and immediately declare the party with the highest number of lawful votes and geographical spread the winner of the election. The decision did not just draw tears; it drew pains, heartbreak and blood. The Supreme Court judgment came exactly one month after it sacked the former Imo State governor, Emeka Ihedioha, who had been in office for eight months, replacing him with APC’s Hope Uzodinma, who came a distant fourth in the March 9, 2010 governorship election in Imo State.
With the judgment, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Diri Duoye, was declared winner and inaugurated as governor of Bayelsa State the following amid pockets of protests and subsequent three-day curfew.
The PDP and its governorship candidate, Mr Diri, had filed a suit against Messrs Lyon and Degi-Eremienyo, and INEC, seeking the disqualification of the APC deputy governorship candidate.
They had claimed that Mr Degi-Eremienyo gave false information in his CF 0001 form submitted to INEC.
It is more painful that Lyon was sacked just two days after he survived a court process against a member of his party, Heineken Lokpobiri, who approached the apex court, asking it to declare him the winner of the APC governorship primary held in the state. He claimed that the party wrongly gave the ticket to Mr Lyon who eventually contested and won the governorship election.
But in its judgment read by Justice Iyang Okoro, the Supreme Court said, “The sole issue is resolved against the appellant. Accordingly, the appeal lacks merit and is hereby dismissed.”
But that was not to be when PDP approached the court. Recall that prior to the election on November 12, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja had disqualified the APC governor-elect on the grounds that his deputy provided false information to INEC.
Mr Ekwo held that there was no connection between the name on the candidate’s school-leaving certificate, first degree (BA), master’s degree and the affidavits he swore.
Lyon started his career as a foreman in Western Geophysical Company Limited, before moving on to become the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Darlon Oil and Gas Nigeria Limited, Darlon Group Nigeria Limited and Arutex and Sons Nigeria Limited.
Lyon joined politics in the Third Republic, as a member of the defunct, National Republican Congress (NRC). He contested and won a councilorship election at Ward 4 in Southern Ijaw, but the military incursion aborted his tenure in 1997. He went on to become a founding member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Southern Ijaw. He was later appointed as the Caretaker Committee Chairman of Apoi Olodiama Local Government Development Center in 2000.
In 2015, he decamped to the All Progressives Congress and contested the Bayelsa State governorship primary election in September 2019, where he emerged as the party’s candidate.
The story of David Lyon will have a special place in history books as the almost governor or the governor that never was. He will have his chance again in 2023, maybe.
The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Amadi, has declined to set up a judicial panel to investigate Governor Siminalayi Fubara, citing a court order.
The Rivers State House of Assembly had requested that Amadi set up a seven-member panel to probe Fubara and his deputy, Ngozi Odu, over allegations of gross misconduct.
However, in a letter dated January 20 and addressed to the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, the chief judge cited two court orders barring him from receiving, forwarding, or considering any requests to form such a panel.
The judge stated that the orders were served on his office on January 16, 2026 and remain in force.
The chief judge emphasised that constitutionalism and the rule of law require all authorities to obey subsisting court orders, irrespective of their perception of the orders’ validity.
He referenced legal precedents, noting that in a similar case in 2007, the Chief Judge of Kwara State was condemned for ignoring a restraining court order when setting up an investigative panel, a decision later voided by the Court of Appeal.
Justice Amadi further observed that the Speaker has already filed an appeal against the court orders at the Court of Appeal, adding another layer to the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the allegations.
“By the doctrine of ‘lis pendens’, parties and the court have to await the outcome of the appeal,” he said.
Justice Amadi further stated that the existence of the injunctions and the pending appeal had effectively tied his hands.
“In view of the foregoing, my hand is fettered, as there are subsisting interim orders of injunction and appeal against the said orders. I am therefore legally disabled at this point from exercising my duties under Section 188(5) of the Constitution in the instant,” he said.
The chief judge appealed to the lawmakers to recognise the legal constraints surrounding the matter.
Justice Amadi, therefore, urged the state assembly to be “magnanimous enough to appreciate the legal position of the matter.”
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has reportedly affirmed the removal of Julius Abure as the national chairman of the Labour Party, LP.
The Court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to recognize the Senator Nenadi Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the party’s lawful leadership.
The development was disclosed by human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, in a post on X, where he said he was present at the Federal High Court when the judgment was delivered in a related case.
Effiong stated that Justice Lifu delivering judgment on Wednesday, upheld the Nenadi Usman-led committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party, reaffirming that Abure’s tenure had elapsed in line with an earlier Supreme Court judgment.
The court consequently directed INEC to immediately recognize Nenadi Usman as the party’s leader.
He wrote: “I am currently before the Federal High Court in Abuja for a case. I listened to judgement delivered in an another case.
“Honourable Justice Lifu has just upheld Senator Nnadi Esther Usman-led National Caretaker Committee as the only valid and lawful leadership of the Labour Party.
“The Judge reaffirmed that by the Supreme Court’s judgement, Julius Abure’s tenure had since elapsed.
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
