Oregon judge accused of blocking gay marriage applicants, hanging Hitler picture

By Shelby Sebens

PORTLAND, Ore. (Reuters) - An Oregon judge who refused to perform same-sex marriages is facing multiple complaints in a state ethics investigation, including that he put up a picture of Adolf Hitler in the Salem courthouse, a state judicial commission said on Tuesday.

Marion County Circuit Court Judge Vance Day is facing an ethics review for screening wedding applicants for gay couples and then refusing to perform the marriages, according to a notice by the Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability. 

A U.S. Supreme Court decision in late June legalized same-sex marriage in all 50 states, but a small number of elected clerks and lower-court judges have voiced opposition on religious grounds, including Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis who was released from jail on Tuesday after refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses.

In addition to the wedding refusal, Day faces complaints of putting up a picture of Hitler in the Marion County courthouse and allowing a veteran with a felony to handle a firearm.

Patrick Korten, a spokeswoman for Day, said the complaints were baseless. He said the Hitler picture was part of a display to honor the service of veterans in World War Two and not to glorify the Nazi dictator.

"We went to war against Hitler," Korten said. "His picture was there. It was not admiringly. It was him as the epitome of the enemy that we went to fight against."

Day has retained an attorney and will be allowed to present evidence at a Nov. 9 hearing, according to the judicial commission notice.

The commission could send the complaint to the Oregon Supreme Court if it finds the judge guilty of violating the judicial code of conduct and the state constitution.

It could also dismiss the complaints, the notice said.

(Reporting by Shelby Sebens; Editing by Eric M. Johnson and Peter Cooney)

Nigeria army seizes vehicle with Boko Haram 'fuel, drugs'

Lagos (AFP) - Nigeria's military said on Tuesday it had made a number of arrests after intercepting a vehicle allegedly carrying fuel and drugs for Boko Haram Islamists waging a six-year-old insurgency in the northeast.

"Following...directives to troops in the northeast for a painstaking search of motorists and cargoes, troops of the Third Division, Nigerian Army, have intercepted and arrested some kingpins and foot soldiers of suppliers of Boko Haram terrorists with hard drugs and other stimulants," the army said in a statement.

It said the seizure was made on Tuesday between the towns of Depchi and Geidam in Yobe state, a hotbed of the Boko Haram insurgency.

Besides drugs, the suspects were also transporting fuel, the statement said, without saying how many people had been arrested.

The army claimed the drugs find as proof the insurgent’s bloody quest to establish a hard-line Islamic state in northeast Nigeria was a sham.

The use of drugs is prohibited in Islam, except for medicinal purposes.

Boko Haram's insurgency has killed an estimated 15,000 people and displaced some 2.1 million others since 2009.

Respondents’ Counsels Unsettles LP, Ogboru’s Witnesses

Witness expresses surprise that petitioners did not mention stuffing of ballot boxes 

It was inconsistencies galore on the part of petitioners’ witnesses on Tuesday in Asaba at the Governorship Elections Tribunal following evidences given during cross examination that contradicted some witnesses’ statements they deposed to on oath and adopted before the tribunal.  

Labour Party (LP) and its gubernatorial candidate in the April 11, 2015 governorship elections in Delta State, Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru are challenging the election victory of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa at the polls .

At the resumed hearing of the matter and cross examination of the petitioners’ witnesses, counsel to LP and Ogboru the petitioners, Mr. Dele Adesina (SAN)   opened his cases with a parade of eight witnesses who testified in the open court in the bid to prove their cases.

Soon after Adesina concluded his examination-in-chief of the witnesses, which was limited to just the adoption of the witness deposition statements on oath, counsels to the respondents, Okowa, PDP and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ; Mr. Ken Mozea (SAN), Mr. Akinlolu Timothy Kehinde (SAN) and Dr. Onyechi  Ikpeazu (SAN) respectively, commenced vigorous cross examination of the witnesses.  

Specifically, the petitioners’ witness number five (PW5), one Mr. Hero Inetiabor who claimed to be LP’s local government election agent and supervisor confirmed under cross examination that he agreed with all the depositions in his witness statement on oath as a polling unit agent.

But that he felt disappointed that LP and Ogboru did not mention in their petition that ballot boxes were stuffed with papers.

He said as a party agent, he saw people carrying ballot papers in their pockets but could not clarify whether they were PDP agents who were stuffing ballot papers into ballot boxes. “I was beaten by thugs that day. I did not lodge any complaint to the police in respect of the beaten I received from the thugs. The action of the thugs was criminal, yet  did not report the incident to the police,” he said

Inetiabor said during the governorship election, that accreditation and voting took place within the time allotted by INEC, although, he left his polling unit after he voted , as such could not give account of what transpired while he was away.

He said on the day of the election that he was moving from one ward to another even when he acknowledged that fact that there was a restriction order by the police and INEC that voters should not move outside of their voting environment, except accredited party agents, yet he told the court that he was not accredited by INEC as his name was not submitted by his party.  

Inetiabor told the court that some PDP thugs attacked the polling unit where he was, but that he did not lodge the complaint to the police or INEC office, even when his party LP engaged in campaigns on the day of election because other parties in the election were also campaigning.

He said as a party agent, he could not remember the number of voters that were accredited for voting for the election in his polling unit, saying that it will be surprising to him to know that 361 voters were accredited.

He told the tribunal that the polling unit under his control is located at Asaba Girls Grammar School, but when confronted with the court records, he became inconsistent, reverting to Anglican Girls Grammar School.  

The petitioners’ fifth witness and LP chairman in Ika South local government area, Mr.  Victor Akpenyi told the tribunal that he did not know if LP sent names of accredited party agents to INEC for the conduct of the election, even when the party did not appoint him as a polling unit agent.

He told the tribunal that he does not know whether LP forwarded his name as a party agent, even when the party did appoint him as an agent to polling unit in the local government, yet he said he was not allowed entrance into INEC’s collation center, where he was to represent the party, adding that he could not remember the number of the polling units he visited.

Under further cross examination, Akpenyi told the tribunal that he was in charge of all the other agents in the local government, yet his name was missing from the INEC’s list of accredited party agents.

Anotherwitness of the petitioners (PW6) Mr. David Utomi told the tribunal that he did not report the rigging of the election to INEC and the police, yet he prepared a report on the development which he submitted to his party.

He said he visited wards 4,6 and 9  of Ani-Obodo Primary School, in Ubulu-uku, during the election , but the records he was confronted with showed that the correct name of the word is Ashaba Ubulu Primary School.

He further told the tribunal that he was a collation agent but the tribunal proved that  he was a polling unit officer.

The seventh witness of the petitioners, Mr. Ochuko  Alagba who identified himself as a lecturer in  Delta state University told the tribunal that he will not give a yes or no answer to the respondents’ question as to whether he signed under duress or not, however, the tribunal records of his witness statement showed that he signed and did not state whether it was done under duress.

Alagba graciously declined most of the questions put to him by the lawyers, which resulted into series of altercation between him and the counsels which prompted the intervention of the tribunal chairman that he should answer directly question put to him. In fact, a near shouting match ensued when he was confronted with the position of public service rule which counsel to Governor Okowa, Ken Mozea read that bars public officers from being appointed as agents for political parties. Arguing that he is not a civil servant but a public officer, Alagba said: “I am aware that public officers are permitted by law to be appointed as polling agents.”

Tribunal Over rules Ogboru, Labour Party, Admits Okowa’s document as exhibit

Governor Okowa’s defense in the on-going Governorship Election Tribunal sitting in Asaba got a significant boost yesterday when the Chairman of the tribunal Justice Nasiru  Gunmi, overruled an objection by the Labour Party seeking to stop counsel to Okowa from tendering exhibits, which could weaken Labour Party’s case.

 Counsel to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Mr. Ken Mozea, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) had during cross examination of Labour Party (LP) state chairman, Chief Tony Ezeagwu, who is also one of the star witnesses to Ogboru, sought to tender  a document containing notice of Labour party’s gubernatorial primary to the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC)  before the tribunal.
However, counsel to Ogboru, Mr. Dele  Adesina (SAN), sensing the damage the document will cause to Labour party’s case objected on the premise that the document that the Okowa team wanted to tender were neither pleaded, listed nor front loaded. A point he maintained, violates the provisions of the Electoral Act 2012.

But, Mozea, raised objection pointing out that the document was pleaded  in paragraph one of the first respondent’s reply. He argued that the essence of cross examination was to test the veracity of the witness’ statement and that the document he sought to tender was a key element in testing the witness.

To add fillip to Mozea’s argument, Counsels to  INEC and PDP , Dr. Onyechi  Ikpeazu  (SAN) and  Mr. Akinlolu Timothy Kehinde, (SAN) aligned themselves with the position  of Mozea and restated that under the Evidence Act,  a witness  can be  cross examined on any document  that is not listed. They maintained that in the instant case, the documents sought to be tendered were front-loaded and listed. At this juncture, Justice Nasiru Gunmi overruled counsel to Ogboru and admitted the document.

 Meanwhile, The Labour Party Chairman, Ezeagwu, had while in the witness box admitted that some LP agents were arrested by the police in connection with the theft of some INEC documents and told the tribunal that the matter is currently in court. 

There was an attempt by Ezeagwu to disown his statement as he told the tribunal that  while preparing the statement deposed  on oath before the court, that INEC officials, party agents and his lawyers  made input and assisted  with relevant information  in the course of preparing the statement. As a result, he averred that the statement was not his whole idea.
But he affirmed that the governorship election which PDP, APC and LP participated in was conducted largely with the use of card readers.

He said that during the election, information about the election results were received from their party agents as he did not participate in the uploading of information into INEC server.
And confronted with the election  result figures  where Okowa scored  724,680 votes ,  to defeat  Ogboru, who  polled 130,028, and that even if the 205,000 disputed votes were removed from the total score, that Okowa  will still  score higher votes ,  Ezeagwu said that INEC calculation could not have been correct.

Attempts  by the  INEC counsel to further cross examine  Ezeagwu met a brick wall as he ( Ezeagwu) asked INEC counsel to direct further questions on the subject to his party’s counsel and declined to answer further  questions .

It was a sort of drama as the tribunal chairman intervened to compel Ezeagwu to answer questions as directed by the respondent’s counsel. But even the Tribunal Chairman’s intervention was rebuffed and Justice Gunmi had to ask him to step out of the witness box and adjourned the matter till tomorrow, September 8, 2015 for continuation of trial. 

Okowa Dissolves SUBEB, PPEB, DLA Boards

*  Appoints New Chairmen, Members

·                 Elijah Ologe, Now Exec. Secretary, Scholarship Board

The Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has effected major changes in some board appointments with the dissolution of boards, making fresh appointments and reshufflements.

A government statement announcing the dissolutions and the new appointments reads: “This is to inform the general public that Delta State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Post Primary Education Board (PPEB) and Direct Labour Agency (DLA) has been dissolved by His Excellency, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, Governor of Delta State.”

The statement listed the new appointments as follows: 

PPEB NEWLY APPOINTED CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS

Sir Patrick Akporuno – Chairman

Mrs Ifeoma Okobia Agbomah -1st member

Mrs Esere Ejifoma Atumu -2nd member

Chief Christiana Etaluku -3rd member.

SUPEB NEWLY APPOINTED CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS

Hon Sunny Ogwu – Chairman,

Hon. (Mrs.) Gbubemi Ikolo – Member,

Chief (Mrs.) Lina Osuyi-Eni – Member

Mrs. Philomena Ededey – Member.

DIRECT LABOUR AGENCY NEWLY APPOINTED DG, AND DIRECTORS.

Hon Frank Enekerogha – Director General

DIRECTORS

Mr Smart Meka

Engr.Blessing Enamuotor

Engr Austin Bebeteidoh.

SCHOLARSHIP BOARD

Comr Elijah Ologe (Former Executive Chairman, Delta State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB), now Executive Secretary Scholarship Board.

He replaces Mr. Peter Amromanoh.

APC, O’tega suffer major setback as tribunal rejects witness, documents

The All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate in April 11, 2015 election in Delta State Olorogun O’tega Emerhor suffered a major setback Friday when the Elections Petition Tribunal rejected moves by them to tender documents they brought to the tribunal through an official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Justice Nasiru Gunmi upheld the submissions and prayer of INEC counsel Anumonye Onyiye who urged the tribunal to reject the plea by Emerhor’s counsel, Chief Thomson Okpoko that the tribunal should admit the documents in evidence. Chief Okpoko, lead counsel to the petitioners had moved a motion to call an INEC witness to tender unit by unit election results of the 25 local government areas of the state as contained in forms EC8E and EC8D.

Just as the INEC witness mounted the box, in the bid to make the necessary introduction, counsel to INEC, Mr.  Anumnoye interjected, drawing the attention of the tribunal to the fact that the document sought to be tendered has been in the custody of APC for over 24 hours ago.

Anumoye argued that since the document has been in the custody of APC and O’tega’s counsels, INEC could not guaranty the authenticity of the document. He sought urged the tribunal to disallow the INEC witness from tendering the said document and that the document should instead be tendered through an APC witness.  

After listening to the arguments of other respondents’ counsel, namely Counsels to INEC, PDP and Governor Ifeanyi Okowa , Mr. Ken Mozie (SAN), Mr. Akinlolu Timothy Kehinde (SAN) and Anumonye O, respectively , Chairman of the Tribunal Justice Nasiru Gunmi  ordered the witness who was yet to give his name to step out of the witness box and leave the courtroom.

This prompted the  APC counsel , Chief Okpoko to call a second witness, one  Mr. Oreh  Ohimor, a lawyer and the Director of Administration and  Operations in O’tega’s campaign organization.

Moments after Mr. Ohimor entered the witness stand, Okpoko , sought leave of the tribunal to tender a unit by unit election result sheets as contained in form EC8 A through   him. This move elicited another round of arguments as the respondents’ counsels took turns in their submissions to argue vehemently against the  plan.

The respondents’ counsels in their objections argued that the  petitioners’ counsel , Chief Okpoko, is trying to tender  electoral documents through the back door, and applying  non-legal methods in the prosecution of their case.

In his reaction Mozie (SAN), counsel to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, in his objection argued that the documents sought to be tendered was not pleaded nor listed in the witness’ statement on oath.

He explained that the documents listed in the witness statement on oath are forms EC8D and EC8E and not form EC8A , and that any attempt to tender form EC8A  would amount to subverting due process and obtaining justice through the back door.

He said: “We object to the admissibility  of these documents, the fundamental foundational  requirements  were not met , in paragraph 14  of the  witness statement, only form EC8D and form  EC8E were pleaded.  In their reply to our reply, it was not pleaded,  no reference  was  made to the document  sought to be tendered, listing the document will not cure it if it was not accommodated  in their pleading. I urge the tribunal to reject it”.

In his submission, counsel to PDP, Akinlolu Timothy Kehinde (SAN) pointed out that it is an elementary principle of law  to put the parties on notice  and not by surprise , as the document sought to be tendered  must be specifically pleaded .

He said  an unleaded document cannot be admitted even when  the document was mentioned   in the witness statement , adding that in the instant case, the  document was not mentioned in the witness statement on oath, neither was it pleaded.

INEC counsel, O. Anumonye while arguing in the same vein, pointed out that “the document sought to be tendered by APC and O’tega were not reflected in the witness deposition”, adding that “having pleaded over voting by tendering forms EC8D and form EC8E, pleading form EC8A will constitute springing a surprise.

In two brief  rulings ,  the chairman of the three-man panel of tribunal , Justice Nasiru Gunmi  rejected the move by the APC to tendered local government result. But in another ruling , Justice Gunmi accepted the unit by unit election results  tendered as exhibits.     

   

Ogboru, LP's witness affirms Okowa's victory

·         Tribunal declares witness hostile

·         You made a Dangerous Choice, INEC tells Ogboru’s Counsel

Just as the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Asaba on Tuesday upheld the claim by Labour Party (LP), and its governorship candidate in the April 11, 2015 election in Delta State that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) staff, Mr. Felix Enabor, the witness they called is a hostile one, the witness during cross examination affirmed that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) duly won the election and was so declared by INEC.

He told the tribunal: “I did not make exhibit P2 or P2A. I did not make any input, I did not tender the document. I did not come with any ill-feeling towards anybody. I am a civil servant. I was telling the truth. I was stating the official position of INEC. I have no external dealings with all those said to have been arrested in connection with the stolen INEC result sheets.”

He affirmed that the result of the governorship election was declared and Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa of PDP was declared winner having polled the majority of votes. Enabor said: “It is correct that I do not work in INEC’s ICT headquarters. It is correct that some of the data captured in the card reader were not uploaded before the directive to shut down the server. Accreditation was done in accordance with the instruction and in accordance with the Electoral Act. The election was not cancelled because of irregularities.”

Mr. Enahor was answering questions under cross examination in the petition filed by the LP and Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru, its gubernatorial candidate  in the just concluded governorship election in Delta State, challenging the election victory of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa at the polls. 

Giving his ruling earlier, Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Nasiru Gunmi,  held that the star witness of the Labour Party and Chief Ogboru has  not only  suddenly abandoned them, but that he has turned hostile.

Counsel to  LP and Ogboru , Mr. Robert Emukpoeruo had informed  the tribunal that certain portions in   paragraphs 5,6, and 7 of  their witness, Mr. Felix Enabor’s statement on oath contained  depositions that  are “animus and hostile” to the petitioners.

The motion elicited strong objections and counter objections from counsels to both parties to the dispute.  

In his ruling, Justice Gunmi upheld the position of the petitioners, saying: “We have carefully examined the deposition of pw2 and we are of the view that some of the paragraphs in the said deposition stand against the pleading of the petitioners, we therefore agree with the petitioner’s counsel that it was right to treat pw2 as a hostile witness for the purpose of being cross examined by the petitioners’ counsel”.

Soon after the court declared Enabor as a hostile  witness, Justice  Gunmi asked Ogboru’s counsel,  Mr. Dele Adesina (SAN) to proceed with his cross examination, where  Enabor   responded to questions saying that  the governorship election conducted by INEC in Delta state was done in compliance with the Electoral  Acts .

Enabor, under examination by the counsels for Okowa, PDP and INEC, Mr. Ken Mozie (SAN), Timothy Kehinde(SAN) and Dr. Onyechi  Ikpeazu (SAN) respectively also affirmed that  he was not the maker of the documents that were tendered in court but that he came only to tender them.

He also said that he did not come to court with ill feelings as he was a civil servant, adding that paragraph five of the deposition he made in court over the stolen INEC document and the arrest of some persons in connection with the criminal act was based on police investigation and report, saying that he has no animosity against those arrested.

He said he stood by the averments made in the depositions in his statement to the tribunal on oath, adding that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa  is the duly  elected  candidate  in the governorship election of Delta State having polled the highest votes .

 Enabor also told the tribunal that, some of the data captured in the card reader were not captured in the field before the server was shut dawn.

Attempt by Ogboru’s counsel to subject the witness to another round of cross examination after the court declared him hostile elicited another round of argument as respondents’ counsels vehemently opposed the move.

According to Adesina, the subpoenaed order on the witness has not been vacated by the tribunal, adding that there are some documents that the witness needed to tender before the tribunal.

Chief Ken Mozie (SAN) strongly opposed the motion arguing “the argument is grossly mischievous. He has been cross examined, he has deposed to his statement, and the subpoena was issued  on the application of the  Petitioners. I submit that there is no provision of the law for disjointed presentation of evidence. I submit that he can no longer give evidence and should be allowed to go”.

Chief Akinlolu Timothy Kehinde (SAN), for PDP in his opposition submitted that “the witness cannot come back to give evidence in chief because there is no provision in our justice system that evidence should be done in bits as he did not apply to make the witness present or tender  his document  before declaring him hostile.” 

Kehinde argued further, that the petitioner can bring any document through other witness, pointing out that in the circumstance they have found themselves, they either sink or swim with the witness 

Ikpeazu, on his part, while aligning with the submissions of the first and second respondents’ counsels, argued that the witness has told the tribunal that all  the documents needed had been produced.

He informed the court that the prosecution made a very serious and dangerous choice to the effect that they would rather treat the witness as hostile witness. He said the move is tantamount to abandonment of a friendly witness, pointing out that if they have to tender any document it has to come through another witness. The petitioners had made a wrong choice, Ikpeazu said.

Ruling on the matter, Justice Gunmi disallowed the moves by the petitioners to compel the witness to tender further document or keep him any longer as witness as they have declared him a hostile witness

He adjourned further hearing on the matter to Monday, September 7, 2015.