Headlines
Ganduje, Lalong, Tambuwal Win at tribunal, PDP to Appeal Verdict
The Kano State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal yesterday upheld the election of Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje after dismissing the appeal filed by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP’s) candidate, Abba Kabiru Yusuf for lack of merit.
Speaking with Journalists after the judgement, PDP Chairman, Rabiu Suleiman Bichi, confirmed that PDP would appeal the tribunal’s resolution, insisting that it would exhaust all legal means to redeem its victory.
Bichi, who cautioned party supporters to remain calm and law abiding pending the final determination of the suit at the upper courts, stressed that the tribunal’s ruling could be faulted.
In his ruling that lasted four hours, the presiding judge, Justice Mohammad Halima Shamaki maintained that Abba and PDP’s petition did not lead credible evidence in the case.
Mohammad said the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC’s) decision to conduct the March 23, 2019 supplementary election was not a unilateral action, but a collective endorsement of all party agents including the PDP.
The tribunal disclosed that INEC complied with all known rules and regulations, electoral act and constitutional provision to declare the March 9 poll inclusive and organised a rerun election.
However, a former President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Muhammad Garba has urged Abba and his supporters to accept the ruling in good faith.
Besides, the Plateau State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Jos dismissed the petition brought before it by PDP gubernatorial candidate, General Jeremiah Timbut Useni challenging the election of Governor Simon Bako Lalong of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Having reviewed the arguments and final written addresses of all the parties and those of their witnesses, the tribunal held that the petitioners failed to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt.
No fewer than 71 witnesses called by the petitioners to prove over-voting, non-compliance with the Electoral Act and election malpractices among others, failed to prove their assertions, saying the allegation of over-voting was like a pack of cards, which has no basis in law.
The three–man panel headed by Justice Halimat Saleeman added that the evidence of the witnesses collapsed ab initio and should be discountenanced.
Meanwhile, the Sokoto State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, has dismissed the petition filed against the election of Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.
The three-man panel in a unanimous decision upheld Tambuwal’s election as Governor of Sokoto State in a sitting that lasted over eight hours.
In the lead judgment delivered by Justice Abbas Abdullahi, it held that the petitioners failed to prove allegations of over-voting, electoral frauds and partial non-compliance.
The APC and its governorship candidate, Ahmed Aliyu, had taken Tambuwal, PDP and INEC to the tribunal, challenging INEC’s return of Tambuwal as winner of the March 9 election and March 23 re-run poll.
The Guardian
The Presidency has dismissed claims that Vice President Kashim Shettima’s recent comments were directed at the political situation in Rivers State or President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s constitutional decisions on the matter.
In a statement on Friday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, the Presidency described the reports as a “gross misrepresentation.”
The statement clarified that Vice President Shettima’s remarks at the public presentation of a book by former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), were misconstrued by some online platforms and individuals.
“These reports have distorted the Vice President’s comments in pursuit of a mischievous agenda,” it stated.
“They twisted his account of how the administration of former President Jonathan considered removing him as Borno Governor during the insurgency to falsely link it with current events in Rivers State.”
The Vice President, who spoke at the launch of OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block in Abuja on Thursday, was said to have referenced the past solely to commend Adoke’s professionalism while in office, and to reflect on Nigeria’s constitutional evolution regarding federal and state relations.
“For the avoidance of doubt, President Tinubu did not remove Governor Fubara from office. The constitutional measure implemented was a suspension, not an outright removal.
“This action was taken in response to the grave political crisis in Rivers State at the time, with the governor facing a looming impeachment and the State Assembly complex under demolition,” Nkwocha clarified.
The Presidency insisted that the action taken by President Tinubu in declaring a state of emergency and suspending the Governor was fully in line with Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which authorises such measures when there is a breakdown of public order requiring extraordinary intervention.
According to the statement, the President’s proclamation invoking Section 305(2) was subsequently ratified by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the National Assembly, confirming the legitimacy and constitutional propriety of the decision.
“The action of President Tinubu in suspending Mr. Fubara and others from exercising the functions of office averted the governor’s outright removal. To conflate suspension with removal is misleading,” the statement further noted.
Nkwocha also stressed that Vice President Shettima’s comments were delivered extemporaneously and intended to underline the importance of public accountability and historical documentation.
He referenced the Vice President’s mention of past public servants, including Adoke and former Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, to illustrate principled leadership.
“His remarks were not in any way a criticism of President Tinubu’s actions, which the Vice President and the entire administration fully support and stand by without reservation,” the spokesman stated.
The Vice President, the statement added, remains in “loyal concert” with President Tinubu and is committed to implementing all constitutional measures necessary to safeguard democracy and uphold order across the country.
Concluding, the Presidency called on media organisations and political actors to desist from misrepresenting public remarks for sensational or partisan purposes.
“We urge media organisations and political actors to desist from the destructive practice of wrenching statements from context in order to fabricate nonexistent conflicts,” Nkwocha said.
Headlines
Akpabio Relieves Natasha of Committee Chairmanship Position, Appoints Akwa Ibom Senator As Replacement
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has replaced suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Diaspora/Non-Governmental Organisations.
In her place, Akpabio named Senator Bassey Aniekun Etim (Akwa Ibom -East).
The Senate President, who made the announcement on the floor in Abuja on Thursday, did not give any reasons.
The committee position had remained vacant since March when the Senate suspended the Kogi-Central Senatorial District lawmaker for six months for flouting the Senate’s rule on the seating arrangement and seat allocation.
The suspended lawmaker, at a point, chaired the Senate Committee on Local Content before Akpabio reassigned her to the Committee on Diaspora/NGO, shortly before she ran into trouble with the Senate over her conduct on seat allocation.
The Supreme Court has affirmed the 2024 governorship election victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dismissing the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
In a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court ruled that the appeal lacked merit. It upheld the earlier judgments of the Court of Appeal and the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had both declared Okpebholo the validly elected governor.
