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Presidential polls: Tribunal confirms Jonathan’s victory

ABUJA—Respite came the way of President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday, as the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, in a unanimous judgment, upheld results of the April 16 presidential election that brought him into power.

A five-man panel of justices that presided over a petition that was lodged before the tribunal by the opposition Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, yesterday, said they were satisfied that President Jonathan and his Vice, Namadi Sambo, won the presidential election and were duly returned by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in accordance with both the Electoral Act and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Delivering the lead judgment yesterday, chairman of the tribunal, Justice Kumai Bayaang Akaahs, held that the petitioner failed to substantiate its allegation that the presidential poll was fraught with manifest irregularities that substantially affected the result of the election. continue reading

Relying on sections 131, 132, 134, 159(1) of the Evidence Act and Supreme Court decided case law in Buhari vs. Obasanjo, Justice Akaahs maintained that the petitioner did not discharge the burden of proof, stressing that all the witness depositions and evidences adduced before the court by CPC, amounted to hearsay.

The tribunal equally discountenanced oral testimonies of 46 witnesses of the CPC who had alleged that President Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, connived with corrupt electoral officials and rigged election in 22 states of the federation.

Though the court noted that the allegation was criminal in nature, it however dismissed it on grounds that it was not supported by empirical evidence.

“If a surgical operation is to be carried out on the petition, it will be seen that the main allegations were made in paragraphs 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 35 and 38. These seemingly untended paragraphs cannot sustain the petition.

“Before a petition can succeed on grounds of non-compliance to the Electoral Act, the petitioner must prove that the non-compliance actually took place and substantially affected the result of the election as was decided in the case between Awolowo and Shagari.

“There is no doubt that it is the statutory duty of the 1st defendant, INEC, to conduct and defend election as an independent and unbiased umpire, however, mere allegation by the petitioner or calling hearsay evidence cannot shift burden of proof to the 1st defendant.

“The onus to establish substantial non-compliance is on the petitioner, it is only after then that the burden shifts to the respondents to prove that the election was not marred by substantial irregularities.

“In which ever angle this petition is looked at, the petitioner did not discharge the burden of proof given on the balance of probability.

“Consequently, the 3rd and 4th respondents (Jonathan and Sambo) won the April 16 presidential election conducted by the 1st respondent (INEC) and were returned by the 2nd respondent (Professor Attahiru Jega) as the duly elected President and Vice President respectively. The petition failed in its entirety and is hereby dismissed. There is no order as to cost”, Justice Akaahs ruled.

Four other justices on the tribunal panel, Mohammed Garba, M.A. Owoade, I.I. Agbube and Justice Obande Ogbuiya, took turns and adopted the lead judgment as their personal verdict on the matter.

It will be recalled that CPC had in its petition, challenged results that were garnered by the PDP in all the 17 states in the South, as well as in Sokoto, Kaduna, Plateau, Kwara, Benue, Adamawa, Nasarawa states in the North and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.

The petitioner alleged that ballot papers meant for specific polling units were illegally diverted to other units and subsequently used for ballot stuffing.

It equally told the tribunal that a local printing company, Tulip Nigeria Limited, printed fake ballot papers that it said was used by the ruling party in rigging the election.

Consequently, it pleaded with the tribunal to nullify the presidential election and order a re-run between it and the PDP, a prayer that was refused yesterday.

Tribunal ruling affirms Nigerians’ will —Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday boasted that the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, at the Court of Appeal, which upheld his election as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria affirms the massive votes he got from majority of Nigerians.

The President in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, described the judgment as a triumph for democracy and an affirmation of the sovereignty of the Nigerian people.

He praised the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, and its Presidential Candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, for their respect for the rule of law and the Constitution, saying their recourse to judicial review of their grievances affirms their faith in the nation’s judiciary.

Extending the hands of fellowship to the CPC and General Buhari, the President called on them to accept the decision of the tribunal, put the past behind them and support his administration’s efforts to transform the nation.

“From this day, let us move forward together as we work to deepen the democratic content of our polity and build a nation of our collective desire,” the President said, adding, “the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal is a victory for all Nigerians”.

President Jonathan expressed his appreciation to all Nigerians for their steadfastness and support, stating “the resolve of his administration to continue to provide good governance, anchored on the strong foundations of honesty, transparency, hard work and fairness to all”.

We will appeal the judgment —Tony Momoh

Immediately the verdict was delivered, the CPC National Chairman, Prince Tony Momoh, yesterday, described it as an anathema to the tenets of justice.

Prince Momoh who said he was not surprised that the verdict went in favour of President Jonathan, said the party will not only take the matter to the apex court, but will remain resolute in its determination towards proving that the presidential election was substantially rigged by the PDP.

“What they forgot is that there are three kinds of judgments, the judgment of the conscience, the judgment of the people and the judgment of God”, he added.

Likewise, former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai who was ostensibly livid that the CPC presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) lost at the tribunal yesterday, said he knew that the PDP and President Jonathan would manipulate the judiciary with a view to covering all the electoral malpractices he said was the hallmark of the April 16 presidential election, adding that it was the grand reason why the Court of Appeal President, Justice Isa Ayo Salami was removed from office.

His words: “this judgment did not take us by surprise at all since it was the same tribunal that ruled that INEC cannot be compelled to produce the database it used in conducting the election. However, we are going to appeal at the Supreme Court not because we can win there, but because we want posterity to judge everybody. We know that it was for this reason that they removed Justice Salami and reconstituted the panel.”

The judgment was a miscarriage of justice — Fashakin

The National Publicity Secretary of CPC, Engr Rotimi Fashakin said “we proved that INEC conducted a shambolic exercise in the South East and South South regions. INEC could not controvert that with evidence of witnesses. What about the motion for judgment that INEC obstructed the course of justice by refusing to allow unfettered access to the materials in its possession which would facilitate the CPC petition? The tribunal judgment was fraught with inconsistencies that would be seen by the appellate court. Let me say clearly, we shall appeal this judgment.

It’s cheap victory — Odumakin

Mr Yinka Odumakin, spokesman to General Buhari said “there was no surprise in the verdict given all the shenanigans that went into the victory of the PDP. Don’t forget that we saw how the Court of Appeal panel was constituted and how the panel began to frustrate our case. The panel also frustrated a subpoena requesting the chairman of INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega to appear before the panel. I do not think Nigerians are fools not to understand what happened. As far as we are concerned, it is a cheap victory for the PDP. We want to encourage our teeming supporters to keep faith in the project called Nigeria because on the long run, victory is certain.

The court shortchanged itself — Sagay

Constitutional lawyer, Professor Itse Sagay (SAN) said “I have not seen the reason given by the court but the court prohibited itself from having full access to the facts. Without copies of the ballot papers, the issues of checking multiple voting materials, makes it difficult. Having prevented the petitioners from going through the election materials, the court has shortchanged itself in the process.

We must respect our court system — Oyegun

Former governor of Edo State, Chief John Oyegun said “that is the end of the matter. We must learn to respect our court system. The opposition, especially the CPC, was disabled. In my own opinion, we (opposition) must blame ourselves because we did not prepare properly. We were not united but that does not mean that the election was well conducted.”

I’m surprised at the verdict — Aturu

Human rights lawyer, Mr Bamidele Aturu said “the way our electoral laws are, it is difficult for a respondent to successfully challenge an election in Nigeria because of the difficulties on our laws. I am not surprised at all but I think we need to commend the CPC for challenging the results of the election. I am not surprised at the judgment at all but let us see whether the CPC will go to the Supreme Court of not.”

Vanguard Nigeria

Bayelsa guber: I’m still in the race- Ben Bruce

Former Director-General of Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, Mr. Ben Murray-Bruce, Tuesday, described reports that he had been disqualified from contesting November 19, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, primaries for Bayelsa State governorship election as wild rumours and falsehood.

It was reported that PDP Appeal Panel, headed by Mrs Biodun Olujimi, had recommended the withdrawal of the provisional clearance earlier granted Mr. Murray-Bruce on the ground that he holds the citizenship of Nigeria and that of United States of America, USA, contrary to section 182 of the Constitution. continue after the cut

According to Section 182 (1a): “No person shall be qualified for election to the office of Governor of a State if, subject to the provisions of section 28 of this Constitution, he has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a country other than Nigeria or, except in such cases as may be prescribed by the National Assembly, he has made a declaration of allegiance to such other country.”

Speaking with Vanguard in Abuja, yesterday, Bruce said: “To the best of my knowledge, nobody has been ousted from the race. If you are ousted from the race, they have to let you know you are ousted from the race. There is no communication to that effect. So everybody is speculating. The race is the only one in the country right now. It is exciting. Everybody is talking about it but nobody has been ousted from the race.”

On the issue of dual citizenship, he cited Section 28 of the Constitution as having protected him.

Section 28 (1) reads: “Subject to the other provisions of this section, a person shall forfeit forthwith his Nigerian citizenship if, not being a citizen of Nigeria by birth, he acquires or retains the citizenship or nationality of a country, other than Nigeria, of which he is not a citizen by birth.”

Bruce said: “That is why the Constitution protects me. So it is impossible to oust me from the race based on that. I cannot be ousted from the race based on that. I was born in Nigeria.”

EDO STATE GOVERNOR ADAMS OSHIOMOLE NAMES STREET IN HONOUR OF SAM LOCO EFE

Late actor,Sam Loco Efe was honoured by A-list personalities as he was committed to mother earth on Friday,October 21,2011 in Edo State.

Amongst the dignitaries in attendance was the governor of the state Governor Adams Oshiomole who named a street in honour of the fallen actor.

The governor,who sadly watched the event,stayed for an hour before announcing the street,Sam Loco Efe Street in honour of the actor.

Honourable Tony One Week Muonagor,who was also in attendance did a tribute album to his fallen colleague amidst tears and wailing.

Rest In perfect peace Sam Loco Efe.

Nadia Buari Dad Angry Over Sex Video

Alhaji Sidiku Buari, biological father of sweet actress Nadia Buari, has expressed strong reservations about an attempt to link his daughter to a sex video acted by Roxie West, an American.
“I don’t want to talk about this because the whole thing is under investigations and there are several ways of knowing who is behind this. Just before this incident, someone had asked me to pay an amount of $100,000 and if I did not pay the money, the reputation of my family would be destroyed. There is more to this but putting it in the public domain would not be good for now,” Alhaji Buari told  Us  yesterday.
Nadia, we  gathered, is currently on a business trip outside Ghana.

Sidiku Buari, a renowned movie producer, musician and onetime President of the Musicians Union of Ghana, complained that whoever started the speculation was being very unfair to the entertainment industry in Ghana and Nadia.
“I mean I am now a happy man that the truth has come to light that the lady involved is Roxie West and not my daughter. My daughter can never do such a thing and no Ghanaian celebrity can do that. And to spread stories that my daughter or any other Ghanaian celebrity has done such a thing does not help anyone because we all have a reputation to protect.
“That is why the media should be careful in handling some of these issues. You should have at least tried to get to the bottom of the story before coming out with it, especially when you know what people can do with computer and the internet these days. But I am happy that people did not even believe it and many people called to tell you it could not be possible,” Alhaji Buari added.
Barely a fortnight ago, a 60-second sex-video circulated widely in Ghana and speculations were rife that the lady involved had a striking resemblance with Nadia.
A few internet sites even captioned the video with the actress’ name and this helped in mongering the speculation that has now turned up to be a mischievous prank by some faceless miscreants.We  has tried to contact persons who are believed to have uploaded the video on Facebook and Twitter and but there has been no response from them so far.
Meanwhile, several persons have downloaded the video onto their mobile phones and are circulating it through Bluetooth and BBM.
The video became very popular and sparked controversy that generated fisticuffs, insults, curses and threats in certain circles when some persons who watched it on Facebook and twitter became divided about the identity of the lady involved.
The lady’s identity has however been confirmed as Roxie West alias Bebe Minx, an American professional  star.

Fashola gives automatic employment to 3 blind lawyers

Three visually impaired lawyers, Victor Anomo, Babatunde Safiu and Salami Abolarinwa, were on Saturday offered automatic employment by Gov. Babatunde Fashola of Lagos.

The governor announced the offer in Ikeja at an event organised to commemorate the 1,600 days of his administration in office.

One of the beneficiaries, Anomo, had solicited for employment at the occasion when he advocated the empowerment of the physically challenged.

The governor directed the State Attorney- General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Adeola Ipaye, to instantly collect their details for employment.

Fashola said the government considered the engagement of the visually impaired lawyers in view of the great efforts they had made in developing themselves inspite their challenges.

The governor also said the employment of the lawyers was aimed at encouraging people with disabilities to strive to achieve their goals in life.

``Recently, we employed two visually impaired persons into the state civil service.

`` Since they could not work on the normal paper we procured Braille machines for them, and I can tell you they are doing well.

``We want to be doing more of things like this. We want to encourage more of people with physical challenges who have acquired some skills, just like these lawyers, and make them part of the civil service,'' he said.

He said the assent to the Disability Bill, which sought to protect the interests of the physically challenged, was a mark of his administration's commitment to bettering the lots of this category of persons.

Fashola said that public buildings and other road infrastructures were, with the enactment of the law, to be fitted with facilities designed to ease the movement of the physically challenged.

He, however, noted that all public structures built in the last four years were designed with such facilities, saying government would continue to protect the interests of the physically challenged.

75 footballers participate in MTN football examination

No fewer than 75 footballers have participated in the MTN Football Scholar pre-mock examination at the National Institute for Sport in Lagos.

The Project Technical Director, Kunle Raji, noted that the MTN Football Scholar was providing a platform for students to combine football and academics.

Raji said that the 75 footballers for the programme were chosen at random from eight cities across the country.

``The cities are Warri, Benin, Akure, Ibadan, Abeokuta, Ado-Ekiti, Osogbo and Lagos,'' he added.

He said the number of footballers would be trimmed to 30 candidates and sent to the International Football Academy, Wasimi, Ogun, for a three-week training programme.

``At the academy, the candidates will be drilled on the rudiments of the game by a consortium of coaches from different countries to broaden their skills,'' he said

The technical director said that the 30 candidates would finally undergo a Scholarship Aptitude Test (SAT) on Nov. 30.

Raji said only 10 candidates would be selected at the end of the exercise and they would proceed to the U.S. on scholarship.