Category: News

*As Labour Party closes case against Mbah

The Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate Mr Chijioke Edoga, on Sunday, closed his case against the victory of Governor Peter Mbah in the March 18 election before the election tribunal sitting in Enugu.

Edeoga closed his case after calling 30 witnesses and one witness subpoena from Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mr Victor Okafor to prove their allegations.

The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal is hearing the petition filed by Mr Chijioke Edeoga of the Labour Party against the election of Peter Mbah of the PDP as the governor.

Edeoga is praying the tribunal to disqualify Mbah over an alleged NYSC certificate forgery and manipulation of election results.

When the matter came up for hearing, the INEC subpoena witness, Okafor told the Tribunal that his commission provided five Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines that were provided in the subpoena list.

The LP counsel, Mr Eyitayo Fatogun (SAN) tendered the five BVAS machines to the Tribunal as the PDP counsel, Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu and Mbah’s counsel, Mr Alex Izinyon objected to the tendering of the machines.

The counsels said that their reasons would be made known during their final addresses.

The tribunal, however, admitted the BVAS machines as evidence.

During cross examination by Fatogun, the subpoena witness said that the information that were generated on the BVAS machines during the governorship election on March 18 were now contained in the BVAS report from the Headquarters in Abuja.

He said that he did not have the BVAS machines for Owo and Ugboka registration areas of Nkanu East Local Government Area, adding that the machines could only be identified by their codes.

According to him, the codes of the five BVAS machines brought include 14/08/06/003, 14/08/01/002, 14/08/06/005, 14/08/17/012, 14/08/01/003,

“All the machines contained the BVAS and accessories,” he said.

He said that he could not operate the BVAS machines beyond the information he earlier gave concerning them because they (machines) had not been used since after the election.

Responding to Izinyon, the counsel to Mbah, the subpoena witness said that the machine could contain only successfully uploaded accredited information.

The two last witnesses called by the LP, Mr Godwin Abba and Amos Onyebuchi, who were LP agents, from Ette central and Ikwele Ugbele respectively, both from Igbo-Etiti North LGA said that there was over voting at their polling units during the governorship election.

Upon the close of the petitioner’s case, the lead counsel to the petitioner, Dr Valerie Azinge commended the Tribunal for their patience as she closed the case.

The INEC counsel, Mr H. Okoli applied for a date to open their defense.

The Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice M. K Akano adjourned the matter till July 18 for INEC to open its defense.

The Nigerian Navy on Sunday said it has deactivated a boat laden with suspected stolen crude in Bayelsa.

It also said that troops of the Navy Ship SOROH (NNS SOROH) recovered two AK-47 rifles, six AK-47 magazines, and 133 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition.

The Commander of the NNS SOROH, Commodore Olushina Ojebode, stated this during a news conference in Yenagoa.

He said that troops of the NNS SOROH during a water patrol at Gbaram community of Agbadam-Foropa made contact with six armed men in a speedboat, who attempted to attack troops.

The troops, he said, overpowered the armed men in the fire fight that ensued, thus making them to flee.

He listed items recovered from the armed men to include two AK-47 rifles, six AK-47 magazines, 133 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, one small techno phone, amongst others.

The Commander said the troops during an anti crude oil theft operation at Southern Ijaw discovered a wooden boat laden with illegal crude oil products.

The boat, he said, had been deactivated in line with extant regulations and standard operating procedure.

He said that with successful operations at Tebidaba, Furopa and Ezetu, combing the Bayelsa maritime environment for oil thieves, operators of illegal refineries and sundry-crimes was non-negotiable.

Ojebode assured of the Navy commitment to provide security within Nigeria’s maritime domain, pursuant to the mandate of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Ikechukuwu Ogalla.

He warned those involved in illegal activities to have a rethink and seek legitimate source of livelihood or face the full weight of the force.

While commending the troops for their gallantry and professionalism, Ojebode urged residents of the state to provide credible information on the activities of criminal elements to security agencies.

The Commander later took a five-minute boat ride through the Epie Creek to Famgbe in Yenagoa, where the troops destroyed the local boat used for oil theft. 

In the petitions filed by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP), and their presidential candidates, Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima have presented their arguments to the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) as to why the petitions should be dismissed.

The respondents dispute the claims made by Atiku and Obi regarding the requirement of scoring 25 percent of votes in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to be declared president. They argue that these claims may stem from a misreading or miscomprehension of the Constitution and relevant provisions.

In their final written addresses, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, representing the respondents, described both petitions as lacking substance.

Tinubu and Shettima asserted that neither petition provided sufficient evidence to support the plaintiffs’ claims that the election did not comply with relevant laws or that the APC candidates were ineligible to contest.

They also pointed out that the petitions did not address common electoral issues such as election rigging, ballot box snatching, violence, or voter intimidation, which are typically associated with electoral vices.

The respondents further explained that the crux of the petitioners’ grievances was the alleged failure to electronically upload some election results to the INEC Election Result Viewing (IREV) portal.

Additionally, the petitioners contended that Tinubu did not score 25 percent of the votes in the FCT. However, the respondents emphasized that the petitioners failed to provide factual evidence to support their claims adequately.

Tinubu stated that he won the election with 8,794,726 votes, surpassing Atiku’s 6,984,520 votes, making him the closest rival. Obi secured a distant third place with 6,101,533 votes.

The respondents pointed out that they obtained more than 25 percent of the total votes cast in 29 states, while Atiku achieved the same in 21 states and Obi in only 16 states and the FCT.

They highlighted the irony that Atiku, who scored 16.13 percent of the votes in the FCT compared to Tinubu’s 19.76 percent, was seeking to be declared the winner while simultaneously challenging Tinubu’s victory.

Citing previous Supreme Court decisions on the status of the FCT, the respondents argued that the Constitution clearly indicates that the FCT should be considered as the 37th state.

They emphasized that any other interpretation would lead to absurdity and chaos. The respondents referred to a range of court decisions that demonstrate a purposeful approach to interpreting the Constitution.

The respondents noted the LP candidate’s attempt to be declared the winner despite coming in a distant third in the election.

They criticized the Obi/LP petition for relying on frivolous claims, including the failure to electronically upload results, non-compliance with the Electoral Act, and an unlawful nomination of the Tinubu/Shettima ticket.

The respondents further criticized Atiku and Obi for basing their petitions on unrelated matters, such as forfeiture proceedings in the United States.

Regarding the qualifications of Tinubu and Shettima, the respondents argued that the petitioners failed to prove their allegations while the respondents provided ample evidence establishing their eligibility to run for the positions of president and vice president.

Tinubu and Shettima asserted that the election was conducted peacefully and in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act, INEC regulations, and election manuals. They highlighted that witnesses called by the petitioners testified to the absence of violence and electoral irregularities during the election.

They also acknowledged the unpredictable nature of technological devices in the Nigerian context.

The respondents claimed that both petitions lacked substance, and contained repetitions, contradictions, and confusion.

They criticized the petitioners’ allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act based on the failure to electronically transmit polling unit results to the IREV portal. The respondents pointed out that manual collation took place from the polling unit level to the national level.

They also highlighted the petitioners’ failure to specify the number of lawful and unlawful votes.

Regarding the witnesses presented by the petitioners, Tinubu and Shettima deemed their evidence unreliable.

However, they argued that their sole witness, Senator Opeyemj Bamidele, demonstrated competence and testified on various subjects, including issues related to US proceedings and the Electoral Act.

In concluding the written address on the Obi petition, Chief Olaonipekun, SAN, the head of the respondents’ legal team, referenced a Supreme Court judgment that described the case as starved of evidence and emphasized that judges cannot manufacture evidence to assist a plaintiff in winning a case.

Overall, the respondents presented their arguments to the PEPC, contesting the claims made by the petitioners.

They questioned the lack of relevant evidence, pointed out inconsistencies in the petitions, and argued for the dismissal of the petitions based on constitutional interpretations, previous court rulings, and the peaceful conduct of the election.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has sought the partnership of the media on the reportage of disaster and emergency occurrences in the country.

The Director-General of NEMA, Mustapha Ahmed, stated this at a workshop for media practitioners on Saturday in Lagos.

The workshop was titled: “Disaster Resilience in Media: Sensitisation Workshop on Promoting Ethical and Ethical Reporting for Media Practitioners.”

Ahmed said NEMA intended to use the workshop to foster collaboration and networking with the media.

He said the goal of NEMA was to facilitate effective information dissemination during emergencies.

“By working together, we can ensure that timely and accurate information reaches the public, creating much needed awareness and enabling them to make informed decisions and take necessary precautions where applicable,” Ahmed said.

He said the objective of the workshop was to provide a clear understanding of NEMA’s operations, Nigeria’s triple response structure and its relationship with sub-national actors.

Ahmed added that the workshop would provide an opportunity for NEMA to interact with media practitioners, share learning, insights and equip media practitioners with knowledge needed in their reportage.

According to him, it will enable media practitioners to mediate misinformation, disinformation and fake news while building resilience in the sector.

Ahmed, however, enjoined media practitioners to act as gatekeepers in this era of disinformation.

“We trust you to act as the bulwark against misinformation and fake news and the shenanigans of citizen journalists and fifth columnists,” Ahmed said.

Contributing, NEMA’s Director, Special Duties, Dr Onimode Abdullahi, in his technical presentation, explored the history of NEMA, the agency’s mandate and its efforts on disaster management.

The first-panel discussion focused on “Navigating Challenges in Disaster Reporting, Insights from Media Practitioners.

The second technical presentation had the topic “Collaborative Approaches in Disaster Reporting, Strengthening Partnerships for Effective Communication and was led by Communications Management Expert, Chido Nwakanma.

Public Relations and Development expert, Toni Kan, facilitated the third technical presentation with the theme: “Ethics in Disaster Reporting: Balancing Sensationalism and Responsible Journalism.