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David Lyon: The Governor that Never Was
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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 African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has pledged to restore fuel subsidy, improve security and create employment if elected president in 2027.
Atiku made the pledge on Thursday during a campaign rally in Kebbi State, where he called on voters to support the ADC, describing it as the only party committed to addressing the three issues.
“The people of Kebbi State, let me ask you a few questions. Do you want the return of subsidy? Do you want security? Do you want employment? Therefore you have no option other than the ADC. ADC is the only political party that is committed to these three objectives and more to bring about prosperity, unity and peace to the people of our country,” he said.
The former Vice President and his running mate also criticised some projects being presented as achievements of the President Bola Tinubu administration, describing them as legacies of the late President Muhammadu Buhari.
Supporters of the ADC gathered at the party’s secretariat in Birnin Kebbi to welcome Atiku and other party chieftains ahead of the rally.
Speaking at the event, the Director-General of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Austin Akobundu, commended party faithful for what he described as their resistance to intimidation by the state government.
Akobundu said the 2027 general elections would be a referendum between suffering Nigerians and the Federal Government under President Tinubu.
The ADC National Chairman, in his remarks, described the party as a moving train that no amount of intimidation could stop.
He called on the people of Kebbi State to vote for Atiku as president, Abubakar Malami as governor and other ADC candidates in the 2027 general elections.
The rally ended with the ADC National Chairman formally presenting the party’s flag to Malami as the party’s governorship candidate for the 2027 election.
The campaign in Kebbi came hours after a Federal High Court in Abuja nullified the leadership of the Senator David Mark-led ADC and voided the actions taken by the party’s executives, including the process that produced Atiku as its presidential candidate.
Justice Peter Lifu delivered the judgment in a suit filed by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former National Deputy Chairman of the party, who challenged the emergence of the Mark-led leadership.
Atiku rejected the ruling, describing it as an attempt to weaken his political support and frustrate his campaign. He said he would challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal.
The ADC also rejected the decision, accusing the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of attempting to cripple the opposition and vowing to challenge the judgment through all available judicial processes.
The Presidential Candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has condemned Thursday’s court judgment purporting to remove Senator David Mark’s leadership of the party, describing it as a calculated attempt to weaken the ADC and frustrate his candidacy.
In a statement issued by Phrank Shaibu, Director of Strategic Communication of the ADC Presidential Campaign Council, Atiku said the timing of the judgment was telling. It came barely a day after a mammoth crowd turned out in Sokoto to welcome him and attend the launch of the ADC campaign.
“The people of Sokoto came out in their thousands because they are hungry for change and believe in our promise to make life affordable again. What we witnessed in Sokoto is only the beginning. The people of Kebbi will have their say, and so will Nigerians across the country as our campaign moves forward.
“My roots are in Northern Nigeria, but my candidacy belongs to all Nigerians. There is a difference between being from the North and being a candidate only for the North. Hunger and hardship do not respect regional boundaries. Nigerians across the country are suffering under this government, and they deserve a leader with a credible plan to make life affordable again.
“The timing of this judgment is no coincidence. It is part of a strategy to weaken my support in the North and frustrate a campaign whose message is resonating across the country. But the ruling party’s greatest miscalculation is to assume that my support ends in the North. What we saw in Sokoto, what we will see in Kebbi and across the country, is the strength of a national movement.”
Atiku said the judgment also raises serious legal concerns.
“Justice Musa Liman of the same Federal High Court had already dismissed the challenge to the David Mark-led leadership in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1637/2025. The court upheld the defendants’ objections on jurisdiction, standing and the failure to exhaust internal party remedies, and resolved the substantive issues in their favour. Why, after that judgment, was another case filed to reopen the same dispute? This is a calculated attempt to circumvent a subsisting judgment. We will challenge this judicial manoeuvre at the Court of Appeal.”
Atiku urged ADC supporters to remain calm and law-abiding and not to let the judgment weaken the momentum generated in Sokoto. The campaign train is already in Kebbi and will continue across the country.
“Our journey to rescue Nigeria from the hardship imposed by the APC government is a long one. Our Affordable Life campaign will continue because Nigerians deserve relief from this crushing cost-of-living crisis. We urge our supporters to remain resolute, take our message from house to house and door to door, and stay peaceful and focused. There is no shaking.”
President Bola Tinubu has requested the Senate to approve the implementation of an external borrowing plan of $7.7 billion.
At an exchange rate of N1,400 to the dollar, the money amounts to about N10.79 trillion
The President said the funds are to part-finance the N20.2 trillion budget deficit.
The new request, according to the Senate President, replaces the $20.52 billion loan request presented last week.
The request has been referred to the Committee on Local and Foreign Debts for further legislative action.
