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BREAKING: More sorrow for Fubara! *S’Court nullifies Rivers polls, sacks LG bosses
The atmosphere around Siminalayi Fubara, Governor of Rivers State, may certainly not be a happy one as the Supreme Court, has continued to hit hard on the foundation of his government, the latest being the nullification of the outcome of the Local Government Elections that were held in Rivers State on October 5, 2024.
The apex court on Friday, upheld an appeal brought before it by the All Progressives Congress (APC), questioning the integrity of the polls which produced 22 of the 23 council chairmen from the Action Peoples Party (APP), while the remaining council was won by Action Alliance (AA), in th 23 council structure.
Apart from the initial violence that trailed the events prior to the election, the state practically went into flames on Monday, October 7 after the inauguration of the executives by Fubara a day before as some of the headquarters of councils were torched by unknown assailants, sparking off accusations and counter accusations by the forces loyal to the governor and those of Nyesom Wike, his predecessor.
About four months after, the Governor has been handed a verdict from the apex court that his efforts were in vain as he had no legal basis to carry out his actions, on the same day he also lost the bid to cling to the four-man faction of the House of Assembly after the same court held that the status of Martin Amaewhule Group of 27 House of Assembly members remained valid.
Justice Jamilu Tukur, who read a unanimous decision by a five-member panel of the apex court, vacated the November 21, 2024, judgement of the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal, which validated the elections.
In doing so, the court held that there was no evidence to establish that the conditions precedent stipulated by section 150(3) of the Electoral Act, 2010, was met before the election was conducted by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commissioners (RSIEC).
Having demolished the position of the Court of Appeal, the apex court restored the verdict of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which barred the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), from releasing voters’ register to the RSIEC for the conduct of the LG polls.
It will be recalled that a special panel of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Onyekachi Otisi held that the high court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain suit against the Rivers State LG elections.
The appellate court equally faulted the trial court for barring security agencies from providing security during the elections.
According to the appellate court, section 28 of the Electoral Act does not cover elections conducted by states but only federal elections, governorship and Area Council Elections in the Federal Capital Territory.
It held that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja, who had on the strength of a suit that was filed by the APC, stopped the conduct of the Rivers State LG elections, acted outside his jurisdiction.
Justice Lifu had based his judgement on the fact that the RSIEC erred by fixing date for the conduct of polls in the 23 local government areas of the state without strict compliance with relevant laws guiding such election.
Justice Lifu held that the RSIEC failed to publish the 90-day mandatory notice before it scheduled the election.
More so, he held that the update and revision of voters’ register to be used for the election ought to have been concluded before any valid date could be fixed for the polls.
Consequently, he ordered INEC not to make the certified voters’ register available to RSIEC, pending when the relevant laws were complied with.
He further barred RSIEC from accepting any voter register from INEC or using same for the purpose of the LG polls, a decision that was upheld by the Supreme Court on Friday.
Peter Obi, candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), has given assignment to Nigerians to put all those aspiring to take up political positions in the country through the grill to ascertain their level of integrity, saying it was required as a sine qua non for the job they seek.
Obi, who has been a subject of discussion in the polity since the allegation of corruption was levied against him by Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesman of his campaign in 2023, over the conduct of the party’s primaries to choose candidates for the 2027 general elections, said the grilling must start with his own person.
A guest in an interview on a podcast with Rufai Oseni, a popular television anchor, the former Governor of Anambra State, stated that it was actually for this reason that he had now sworn to see the litigation he instituted against Okonkwo through.
His take is that the Nollywood actor should use the courtrooms to give all the details of bad behaviour, following his threat to expose him fully, after alleging that he was collecting money from aspirants in the said election for electoral favours.
Hear him: “The issue of taking Kenneth Okonkwo to court wouldn’t have arisen if he had stopped at those allegations. But he claimed he still has more he would expose about me in the future. So, I am very happy to take him to court so that he can expose me publicly, alongside other Nigerians. If any of them has any criminal allegations against me, they should bring them to court.
“Not just Kenneth, everybody should now say those things they know that is bad about me or I did that is wrong because it’s good for the system, it’s good for the society,” Obi said.
“So, if you know that when we were in primary school, this man was cheating or didn’t go to the primary school, didn’t go to secondary school, didn’t do, if you know this man has done something criminal somewhere, this is time to bring it up.”
For the umpteenth time, Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has warned about the dangerous implication of using state institutions, particularly the judiciary to destroy Nigeria’s democracy, saying it is an ill-wind that blows nobody any good.
Atiku, presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), speaking on the heels of Tuesday’s verdict of the Court of Appeal, halting the de-registration order by the Federal High Court, insisted that judicial officers must not lend themselves to any act capable of undermining the nation’s democratic process.
The appellate court had ordered a stay of execution on the order made on Monday by Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court Abuja, for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the ADC alongside four other political parties).
A totally scandalised Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, had taken umbrage, sparing no hard words in upbraiding the lower court judge, stating that his likes were unfit to sit on the bench.
In a unanimous ruling by a three-man panel, the court held that Lifu’s action was “the highest form of judicial impertinence”, stressing that the Supreme Court previously held that a judge who acted in such a manner.
Describing his conduct as the height of judicial rascality, the upper court, stated: “Courts are enjoined to protect their integrity. This Court has supervisory authority over the trial court.
“The decision of the lower court to proceed with the judgment despite the express order of this court is a brazen violation of the hierarchy of the court and the 1999 Constitution.
This court has the duty to invoke its powers in ensuring that its orders are obeyed. The application for a stay of execution is here yet granted. The enforcement of the judgment is stayed.”
Atiku, who hailed the position of the higher court, which restored his hope to be on the ballot as presidential candidate in the 2027 election, also noted the role of INEC as “significant.”
He said: “I welcome the Court of Appeal’s decision to stay the execution of the Federal High Court judgement seeking the deregistration of our great party, the ADC, and four other political parties. It is particularly significant that INEC itself initiated the application for the stay.
“The development reflects growing public concern over judicial contradictions and politically charged rulings within the judiciary. “Any attempt to undermine Nigeria’s hard-won democracy through judicial manipulation is a grave danger to the Republic. If our democracy suffers further injury, history will demand accountability from those entrusted with dispensing justice.
Outside ADC, Lifu’s order, also included: Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), similarly slammed for allegedly failing to meet the constitutional requirements for continued registration and participation in elections.
“He is running in contempt of the court. Justice Lifu should be arrested because he is acting in contempt of the court which is a criminal act,” were the exact words with which the African Democratic Congress (ADC), demonstrated its angst over the court ruling on Monday, ordering its de-registration as a political party in Nigeria.
A furious Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesman of the party, told his host while appearing as a guest on Monday’s edition of Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television that the judge of the Abuja Federal High Court who gave the order was actually playing with fire because of the consequences.
Directly accusing him of playing the script of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to ensure that President Bola Tinubu emerged the sole candidate for the 2027 presidential election, the party spokesman, was emphatic that the plan would not work, as head or tail, ADC must be on the ballot in all the elections.
Hear him: “There is a Court of Appeal order saying don’t hear this case until October 27. So, on what basis? You can’t place something on nothing. The Court of Appeal said don’t act on this until I hear it on October 27. So, on what basis did he deliver the judgement
“So, for us in the African Democratic Congress, what we’re convinced and they know is what they have done has no leg to stand on legally. What they want to do is to create doubts in the minds of the people that this ADC has too many legal cases, can we actually run on this? And to distract us. But we’re not distracted.
“We’re very clear. It was in spite of all they have done since ADC came on board that we ran one of the best and one of the most comprehensive direct primaries in the history of democracy in Nigeria. So, we are strong enough to withstand this. And that’s why I’m saying that we are going to contest in 2027. We’re ADC. We don’t buckle before dictatorship.”
Stressing on the implication of the judgement, which also affected Accord Party (AP), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) for allegedly failing to meet constitutional and electoral performance requirements, following a suit by the National Forum of Former Legislators, he said it portended grave danger.
He added: “We are not surprised. We know that the Nigerian people believe that there is a problem with the judiciary, but what we did not expect is the level of judicial rascality that was demonstrated today.
“What we are saying is that we reject it in its totality, and we are saying that the people behind this are playing with fire. Hundreds, if not thousands, have obtained nomination forms and contested elections and emerged as candidates on the platform of the ADC.”
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