Tribunal upholds Okowa’s victory at the polls, dismisses Ogboru-LP, petition with costs

The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Asaba Monday up held the election of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa as the duly elected governor of Delta State, when it dismissed the two petitions of the opposition parties and their candidates in April 11, 2015 elections.

Victorious Governor Okowa

The judgments were delivered at separate times in the crowded high court in GRA, Asaba.

The first judgment was on the petition filed by Labour Party (LP) and its candidate, chief Great Ovedje Ogboru in which the petitioners sought the declaration of the tribunal that the said election was invalid by reason of non compliance with the law. They also sought a declaration that the election conducted by the Independent National Electoral commission (INEC) was invalid by reason of corruption, and a 

Chief Great Ogboru, Labour Party Governorship candidate

declaration Governor Okowa was not duly elected. They urged the tribunal to declare that section 178 of the Constitution was not fulfilled by Okowa because he did not get two-third of votes cast in the required number of local governments in the state. They also sought a declaration that the declaration of Okowa as the duly elected governor of Delta state was null and void. The petitioners also contended that there was over voting as the votes exceeded the number of accredited voters captured by the card readers. That the tribunal should declare that there was swiping of the card reader.

Reviewing the case and the submissions of counsels, the tribunal recalled that Okowa, the first respondent, through his counsels Dr. Alex Iziyon (SAN) and Chief Ken Mozia (SAN) denied all the allegations, stating among other things that card reader was used  as well as the voters register was used for accreditation. He argued that card reader alone cannot be used because where card reader fails resort must be to the use of the voters register as provided by the Electoral Act. The counsels.

Counsel to the second respondent, PDP, Mr. Akinlolu Kehinde (SAN) submitted that the election was held in substantial compliance with the law. That there was no corrupt practice as alleged by Ogboru and LP, adding that the use of the card reader was not contemplated by the Electoral act, and that there was no over voting because the PDP denied claims of hijack of voting materials.

The tribunal recalled that INEC, the third respondent, was not brought with due process of the law and the petition should be dismissed because the election was held in substantial compliance with the law. INEC pointed out that here was no over voting during the election, that the petitioners were in error to use the card reader only as the basis to capture the voters without taking cognizance of voters accredited manually using the voters’ register.

In the judgment of the tribunal headed by Justice Nasiru Gunmi, it held that LP and Ogboru had locus standi in bring the petition. It held that the card reader had the problem of integrity and other challenges bordering on availability of network and the server being in active service.

The tribunal judgment made specific reference to PW 15, Mr. turner Ogboru, described as blood brother of Great Ogboru (petitioner), who said he did not use voters register in his analysis because INEC did not give him a copy. The tribunal recalled that PW 15 said he never had the opportunity to check any card reader. “He did not play any role in the uploading of data from the card reader into INEC’s server. The evidence of PW 15 cannot be used as basis to determine the functionality of the card reader,” the tribunal held, pointing out that the deposition of PW 16 was struck out because it was smuggled in.

According to the tribunal, PW 1 said she could not vouch for the integrity of the card reader. “Evidence of PW 1, knocked down the evidence of PW 15 and PW 16,” the tribunal said, adding: “We hold that the transmission of data was not automatic since transmission was subject to the server being in operation. There was no credible evidence to prove that the card reader is reliable.”

Therefore, the tribunal declared that the petitioners had not proved that the election of April 1, 2015 in Delta state was characterized by over voting.

On the allegation of corruption, the tribunal said: “It is a settled issue that the person who alleges corruption is that one that has the onus of proof. PW 15 did not provide any proof to show that corrupt practices were engaged in during the elections. The issue of corruption is resolved against the petitioner and in favour of the respondents.”

Besides, the tribunal also held that the petitioners did not prove the grounds of the claims, and “the petition is hereby dismissed with N50,000 to each of the respondents.

For Governor Okowa, news of the dismissal of the petition was cheering news for which God is to be praised. At the thanksgiving service in the New chapel of Government House, Asaba, he expressed gratitude to God for the turn of events at the tribunal even as he commended the right of the petitioners to exercise their right to go to court.

Accompanied by his wife, Edith, and flanked by Senator James Manager, the Deputy Governor, Kingsley Otuaro, Okowa said: “It was their right to to go to court. They have exercised that right. But they really had nothing to hold on to except the card reader. April 11, 2015 election was the first election that in Delta State in which no one died. It is time to rejoice, and it is also time to rejoice more in the Lord.”

Okowa commended the judges for being thorough. “I congratulate the tribunal panel for taking the right decision. I call on my brothers, O’tega and Ogboru to join hands with me to bring prosperity to every Deltan. They have not lost, because they are Deltans. I extend my hand of fellowship to them. I look forward to them to join us, and I urge them to bring those ideas they have so we can put them together for the benefit of Deltans.   

Buhari, Okowa to attend 3rd summit of India-Africa Forum

 

President Muhammadu Buhari will leave Abuja on Tuesday for New Delhi to participate in the 3rd Summit of the India-Africa Forum aimed at boosting socio-economic development in Africa and India, accompanied by Governor of Delta state, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa and his Kano state counterpart.

President Buhari

Governor Okowa of Delta State

This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the president, Mr Femi Adesina.

The India-Africa Forum was established in 2008 as the official platform for the advancement of mutually-beneficial relations between India and African nations.

Adesina stated that President Buhari, the Indian Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi and other participating Heads of State and Government would deliberate on issues of common concern to their countries such as climate change and international terrorism.

He noted that this year’s summit would enable the leaders to discuss additional measures aimed at boosting joint collaboration to accelerate the pace of socio-economic development in Africa and India.

The summit, which follows the 2nd Summit held in Addis Ababa in 2011, will enable the leaders to deliberate on further cooperation for the alleviation of poverty, and the eradication of hunger, disease and illiteracy.

President Buhari would hold bilateral talks with Prime Minister Modi and other senior Indian government officials on Wednesday, ahead of the opening of the summit on Thursday.

Buhari would also meet with Chief Executive Officers of Indian companies with existing or prospective interests in Nigeria before returning to Abuja on Oct. 30.

The President would be accompanied by the governors of Kano and Delta states, as well as the National Security Adviser, Retired Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno.

Others include Permanent Secretaries in the Ministries of Defence, Power, Communications Technology, Agriculture, Foreign Affairs and Industry, Trade and Investment. (NAN)

45 in custody over 'Boko Haram plot' in Lagos: sources

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Lagos (AFP) - Nigeria's secret police have arrested and charged 45 suspects over an alleged Boko Haram plot to attack the country's financial hub, Lagos, sources with knowledge of the matter told AFP on Sunday.

Akinwumi Ambode, Governor of Lagos state

"About 60 suspects were picked up from different locations in Lagos by the Department of State Services acting on intelligence information they were planning to attack Dolphin Estate in Ikoyi last month," said one source, referring to an upscale area of Lagos.

Both sources, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, said some of the suspects were released after preliminary investigations, while 45 others were taken to a magistrate court on Friday.

"They were arraigned on holding charges. The DSS urged the court to remand them in prison pending further investigation and their eventual arraignment before a high court," said a source.

Dolphin Estate is a gated community on the Ikoyi island, which is home to wealthy Nigerians as well as expatriate workers, many of them in the oil and gas industry.

Any attack on Lagos, which drives Nigeria's economy and is seen by many foreign governments as a gateway to West Africa, would likely send shock waves through both.

Lagos State Information Commissioner Steve Ayorinde on Saturday called for the public's help in ensuring the safety of the megacity's 20 million-strong population.

"Our appeal goes to every school, housing estates, religious houses, markets and shopping complexes, hotels and restaurants and sporting arenas to take issues of security and personal safety more seriously these days and to work with both the government and security agencies in promptly reporting any persons with suspicious activities or unusual gatherings that may compromise security," he said.

"Care must also be taken in how domestic servants and house aides are also employed," he added in a statement.

Boko Haram, which wants to carve out a hardline Islamic state in Nigeria's northeast, has threatened to move south to spread its six-year-old insurgency in the country.

The capital, Abuja, has been hit several times, most recently on October 2 when three suicide bombers killed 18 in two satellite towns -- while Lagos was attacked last June.

The car bombing, near fuel depots and the city's main port, killed at least four and although denied by the authorities, was claimed by Boko Haram's shadowy leader, Abubakar Shekau.

In one propaganda video, Shekau threatened to hit Nigeria's oil-producing south.

Security analysts said at the time the Lagos bombing was likely to have been carried out by a small group of Boko Haram sympathisers, with no direct link to the group's high command.

- Military checkpoint targeted -

President Muhammadu Buhari, who came to power in May on a promise of crushing Boko Haram, has given his military commanders until the end of the year to bring the insurgency to a close.

That has led to a slew of announcements, particularly from the military, about progress in the counter-insurgency.

But at the same time suicide attacks and bombings against "soft" civilian targets have continued. Nearly 170 people have been killed this month and more than 1,420 since Buhari came to power, according to an AFP tally.

At least 58 people were killed on Friday in blasts at two mosques in the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, and the capital of neighbouring Adamawa state, Yola.

On Sunday, four suicide bombers attempting to blow up a military checkpoint in Maiduguri were killed when their car exploded, local vigilantes, assisting the military in the fight against Boko Haram told AFP.

"Around 1:30 pm, a Golf car carrying four people exploded just before the Jimtilo military checkout, on the outskirts of Maiduguri," vigilante Baba Kura said.

"We mobilised to the scene along with military personnel and we discovered the explosion was caused by explosives and the car was engulfed in flames,"

Another vigilante Umar Sani gave a similar account of the incident.

"A car exploded just befoe reaching a military checkpoint. All the four occupants of the car died from the explosion," he said.

Akpabio’s Arrest Plot to Weaken Legislature, Our Party, says PDP

By Chibuzo Ukaibe

(Leadership Newspaper)

The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Sunday declared that the travails of the former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senaor Godswill Akpabio, was part of the plot by the current administration to weaken the legislature and by extension the opposition ahead of 2019.

Senator Akpabio

The party also, said the ostentatious thanksgiving of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Engr. Babachir David Lawal, portrays the insensitivity of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at a time the North-East geo-political zone was ravaged by insurgency.

Akpabio was on Friday invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), following a petition alleging that he stole N108bn.

The Department of State Services (DSS) had recently raided Akpabio’s residence in Akwa Ibom State government house.

Addressing a press conference over Akpabio’s arrest, the national publicity secretary of PDP, Olisa Metuh, who accused President Muhammadu Buhari of dictatorship, said “On the issue of Senator Godswill Akpabio, we invite Nigerians to note that in the three rich states of Akwa-Ibom, Rivers and Lagos states, there were petitions against their former governors.

“Whereas the former APC governors of Lagos and Rivers were rewarded with ministerial nominations, their Akwa Ibom PDP counterpart and the current Senate Minority Leader is being hounded by the EFCC.

“This is in spite of the common knowledge that Akwa-Ibom under the Senator Akpabio is arguably the least indebted state in Nigeria, and where the governor appropriately applied available resources to effectively transform the state.

“We challenge the APC to show Nigerians any of their governor that matched the feats achieved in Akwa-Ibom under Senator Akpabio, whose only building in Uyo is uncompleted and being built with verifiable bank loans.

“The PDP therefore state categorically that the orchestrated investigation of Senator Akpabio is politically motivated and targeted at weakening the PDP for 2019 elections, by virtue of his being the face of opposition in the National Assembly.

“It is also part of the fight by the Presidency to weaken the legislature as an arm of government and prevent it from effectively carrying out its constitutional role of checks and balances in a democracy.

“As we speak, no APC member, despite the public petitions of corruption and squandering of state funds, has been invited or questioned by the EFCC. We challenge the EFCC, as an anti-corruption agency, to show Nigerians any member of the APC it has so far questioned, not to talk of being arrested since the emergence of this administration, despite petitions against them.

“Recall that even the case of former Adamawa state Governor Murtala Nyako started before the advent of the current administration but is now reportedly being worked on ostensibly to extricate APC members involved.”

He further said while the PDP is not averse to the anti-corruption crusade of the current administration, the opposition spokesman, the “APC and its government have been busy denigrating the PDP,” appropriating their achievements while at the same time blackmailing, hounding and harassing our elected members with the aim to cow and force them to leave the PDP and join their party.

“We have verifiable reports from our key members that agents of the APC have been approaching them to join the APC with threats to use the EFCC to victimize them should they refuse.

“The APC and its agents have been boasting that they have the powers to deal with or spare any person, depending on the party such person belongs to.

“This clearly explains why the so-called fight against corruption has been selective and focused against PDP members, despite counsels by stakeholders that it should be holistic and in accordance with the due process of the law.”

He said if the APC led government had found any incriminating evidence against Akpabio when DSS stormed the state recently, they would have made it known.

“The issue is that if the agency actually found anything in Akwa Ibom there will be euphoria. It would be dramatized. If they have found anything we challenge them to produce it. As long as they don’t do that they are fishing for information that they will never get.”

He said the attack on Akpabio was a disincentive, adding that they stand completely with the achievement of Akpabio.

NDLEA arrests man with 108 ATM cards at MMIA

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Saturday said it had arrested a 34-year-old man, (name withheld) suspected to be working for an international criminal organisation.

The agency said through a statement by its Head of Public Affairs, Ofoyeju Mitchell, that the suspect was in possession of 108 automatic teller machine (ATM) debit cards.

According to the agency, the arrest took place at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos while the suspect was attempting to board a Qatar Airline flight to China.

``The debit cards belong to five commercial banks,’’ the agency said.

It quoted its commander at the Lagos airport, Mr Ahmadu Garba, as saying that the suspect was arrested in connection with alleged money laundering.

The agency also added that the suspect was immediately transferred to the Assets and Financial Investigation Directorate of the Agency for investigation.

``First City Monument Bank (FCMB) had the highest number of cards with 58. Stanbic IBC Bank has 23 cards, Zenith Bank 19, Fidelity Bank 6 and Diamond Bank 2.

``Mrs Victoria Egbase, the Director of Assets and Financial Investigation, said that the Agency had established a prima facie case of financial crime against the suspect,’’ it said.

It said that the Chairman/Chief Executive of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, had ordered the transfer of the case to the EFCC for further investigation.

The agency quoted the suspect as saying in his statement that he was asked to take the cards to China. (NAN)

Clark, the father, Jonathan, the son

                                                                                                                   OPINION   

By Reuben Abati                                                               

Dr. Abati

I HAVE tried delaying the writing of this piece in the honest expectation that someone probably misquoted Chief E.K. Clark, when he reportedly publicly disowned former President Goodluck Jonathan. I had hoped that our dear father, E.K. Clark, would issue a counter statement and say the usual things politicians say: “they quoted me out of context!”  “Jonathan is my son”. That has not happened; rather, some other Ijaw voices, including one Joseph Evah, have come to the defence of the old man, to join hands in rubbishing a man they once defended to the hilt and used as a bargaining chip for the Ijaw interest in the larger Nigerian geo-politics.

Ex-president Jonathan, (left) and Chief E.k. Clark

If President Jonathan had returned to power on May 29, 2015, these same persons would have remained in the corridors of power, displaying all forms of ethnic triumphalism. It is the reason in case they do not realize it, why the existent power blocs that consider themselves most fit to rule, continue to believe that those whose ancestors never ran empires can never be trusted with power, hence they can only be admitted as other people’s agents or as merchants of their own interests which may even be defined for them as is deemed convenient. Mercantilism may bring profit, but in power politics, it destroys integrity and compromises otherwise sacred values.

President Jonathan being publicly condemned by his own Ijaw brothers, particularly those who were once staunch supporters of his government further serves the purpose of exposing the limits of the politics of proximity. Politics in Africa is driven by this particular factor; it is at the root of all the other evils: prebendalism, clientelism and what Matthew Kukah has famously described as the “myownisation of power”.  It is both positive and negative, but obviously, more of the latter than the former. It is considered positive only when it is beneficial to all parties concerned, and when the template changes, the ground also shifts. As in that song, the solid rock of proximity is soon replaced by shifting sands. Old worship becomes new opportunism. And the observant public is left confounded.

Chief E.K. Clark? Who would ever think, Chief E.K. Clark would publicly disown President Jonathan?  He says Jonathan was a weak President. At what point did he come to that realization? Yet, throughout the five years (not six, please) of the Jonathan Presidency, he spoke loudly against anyone who opposed the President. He was so combative he was once quoted as suggesting that Nigeria could have problems if Jonathan was not allowed to return to office. Today, he is the one helping President Jonathan’s successor to quench the fires. He always openly said President Jonathan is “his son”. Today, he is not just turning against his own son, he is telling the world his son as President lacked the political will to fight corruption. He has also accused his son of being too much of a gentleman. Really? Gentlemanliness would be considered honourable in refined circles.  Is Pa E.K. Clark recommending something else in order to prove that he is no longer a politician but a statesman as he says?

As someone who was a member of the Jonathan administration, and who interacted often with the old man, I can only say that I am shocked.  This is the equivalent of the old man deleting President Jonathan’s phone number and ensuring that calls from his phone no longer ring at the Jonathan end. During the Jonathan years, Chief E. K. Clark was arguably the most vocal Ijaw leader defending the government. He called the President “my son”, and both father and son remained in constant touch.

There is something about having the President’s ears in a Presidential system, elevated to the level of a fetish in the clientilist Nigerian political system. Persons in the corridors of power who have the President’s ear- be they cook, valet, in-laws, wife, cousin, former school mates, priests, or whatever, enjoy special privileges. They have access to the President and they can whisper into his ears. That’s all they have as power: the power to whisper and run a whispering campaign that can translate into opportunities or losses for those outside that informal power loop around every Presidency, that tends to be really influential.

Every President must beware of those persons who come around calling them “Daddy”, “Uncle”, na my brother dey there”, “my son”, “our in-law”: emotional blackmailers relying on old connections. They are courted, patronized and given more attention and honour than they deserve by those looking for access to the President or government. Even when the power and authority of the whispering exploiters of the politics of proximity is contrived, they go out of their way to exaggerate it. They acquire so much from being seen to be in a position to make things happen.

Chief E. K. Clark had the President’s ears. He had unfettered access to his son. He was invited to most state events.  And he looked out for the man he called “my son”, in whom he was well pleased. Chief Clark’s energy level in the service of the Jonathan administration was impressive. Fearless and outspoken, he deployed his enormous talents in the service of the Jonathan government.  If a press statement was tame, he drew attention to it and urged a more robust defence of “your boss”. If any invective from the APC was overlooked, he urged prompt rebuttal. If the party was tardy in defending “his son”, he weighed in.

If anyone had accused the President of lacking “the political will to fight corruption” at that time, he, E.K. Clark, would have called a press conference to draw attention to the Jonathan administration’s institutional reforms and preventive measures, his commitment to electoral integrity to check political corruption, and the hundreds of convictions secured by both the ICPC and EFCC under his son’s watch. So prominent and influential was he, that ministers, political jobbers etc etc trooped to his house to pay homage.

In due course, those who opposed President Jonathan did not spare Chief E. K. Clark either. He was accused of making inflammatory and unstatesman-like statements. An old war-horse, nobody could intimidate him. He was not President Olusegun Obasanjo’s fan in particular. He believed Obasanjo wanted to sabotage his son, and he wanted Obasanjo put in his place. Beneath all of that, was an unmistaken rivalry between the two old men, seeking to control the levers of Nigerian politics.

Every President probably needs a strong, passionate ally like Chief E. K. Clark. But what happened? What went wrong? Don’t get me wrong. I am not necessarily saying that the Ijaw leader should have remained loyal to and defend Goodluck Jonathan because they are both Ijaws; patriotism definitely could be stronger than ethnic affinities, nonetheless that E. K. Clark tale about leaving politics and becoming a statesman is nothing but sheer crap.  If Jonathan had returned to office, he would still be a card-carrying member of the PDP and the “father of the President” and we would still have been hearing that famous phrase, “my son”. Chief E. K. Clark, five months after, has practically told the world that President Buhari is better than “his own son.”

It is the worst form of humiliation that President Jonathan has received since he left office.  It is also the finest compliment that President Buhari has received since he assumed office. The timing is also auspicious: just when the public is beginning to worry about the direction of the Buhari government, E. K. Clark shows up to lend a hand of support and endorsement. Only one phrase was missing in his statement, and it should have been added: “my son, Buhari.” It probably won’t be too long before we hear the old man saying “I am a statesman, Buhari is my son.”  I can imagine President Obasanjo grinning with delight. If he really wants to be kind, he could invite E.K. Clark to his home in Ota or Abeokuta to come and do the needful by publicly tearing his PDP membership card and join him in that exclusive club of Nigerian statesmen! The only problem with that club these days is that you can become a member by just saying so or by retiring from partisan politics. We are more or less being told that there are no statesmen in any of the political parties.

It is not funny. Julius Ceasar asked Brutus in one of the famous lines in written literature: “Et tu Brutus?” President Jonathan should ask Chief E. K. Clark: “Et tu Papa?” To which the father will probably tell the son: “Ces’t la vie, mon cher garcon.”  And really, that is life. In the face of other considerations, loyalties vanish; synergies collapse. The wisdom of the tribe is overturned; the politics of proximity dissolves; loyalties remain in a perpetual process of construction. Thus, individual interests and transactions drive the political game in Nigeria, with time and context as key determinants.

These are teachable moments for President Jonathan. Power attracts men and women like bees to nectar, the state of powerlessness ends as a journey to the island of loneliness. However, the greatest defender of our work in office is not our ethnic “fathers and “brothers” but rather our legacy. The real loss is that President Jonathan’s heroism, his messianic sacrifice in the face of defeat, is being swept under the carpet and his own brothers who used to say that the Ijaws are driven by a principle of “one for all and all for another”, have become agent-architects of his pain. The Ijaw platform having seemingly been de-centered, Chief E.K. Clark and others are seeking assimilation in the new power structure. It is a telling reconstruction of the politics of proximity and mimicry.

Chief E.K. Clark once defended the rights of ethnic minorities to aspire to the highest offices in the land, his latest declaration about his son reaffirms the existing stereotype at the heart of Nigeria’s hegemonic politics. The same hegemons and their agents whom Clark used to fight furiously will no doubt find him eminently quotable now that he has proclaimed that it is wrong to be a “gentleman”, and that his son lacks “the political will to fight corruption”. There is more to this than we may ever know. Chief Clark can insist from now till 2019 that he has spoken as a statesman and as a matter of principle. His re-alignment is curious nonetheless. 

• Dr. Abati was Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Corporate Affairs Commission being re-positioned, says Registrar General

The Registrar-General, Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Mr Bello Mahmud, has said that the commission is being repositioned for enhanced service delivery.

Mahmud, according to a statement issued by the CAC Director of Public Affairs, Mr Williams Churchill in Abuja on Thursday, made the statement at a management retreat.

He said that management used the retreat to take a critical look at the commission's regulatory role, its impacts and challenges.

''The RG said that the forum with the theme, “Tomorrow’s registry, today” was organised to enable employees to brainstorm on emerging administrative and operational issues, to chart the way forward.

"He stated that staff have a major role to play in re-positioning the commission as a world class company registry.

"According to him, the commission is collaborating with stakeholders for a nationwide sensitisation campaign on the benefits of business registration.

"He stated that the objective was to migrate businesses from the informal to the formal sector," he.

Mahmud was also reported as saying that the recently introduced decentralisation policy of the commission had further enhanced the process of business registration.

He explained that the policy, incorporation applications could be processed and certificates issued to customers without recourse to the head office.

“This has significantly reduced the cost of doing business as customers no longer have to travel or send documents to Abuja.

"The start-to-finish registration of companies is currently obtainable in Lagos (Yaba and Aluasa), Enugu, Kano, Kaduna and Port Harcourt. The services will be extended to other state offices soon," the statement said.

He added that the RG also emphasised on the deployment of the new Company Registration Portal (CRP), which enabled customers to process and pay for services electronically via the web.

The CRP is an improvement on the old portal, which had functional limitations in features and user ability.

"Mahmud urged the staff to shun corruption and brace up for emerging policies of the Federal Government aimed at improving the business climate." (NAN)