Sahara Reporters Latest News Today Sunday 17th July 2022
Sahara Reporters Latest News Today and headlines on some of the happenings and news trend in the Country, today 17/07/22
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Nigerian Youths Should Know No More Government Jobs, My Children Know I Have No Inheritance For Them –Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday charged the youth to seek education and arm themselves with skills and the ability to fight poverty to meet the needs of the 21st Century.
Buhari said the youth should not seek government jobs which are unavailable, stressing that more time should be given to the coaching of future leaders, with basic knowledge of moral values, as the fast-changing world, driven by new technology, would be more competitive and demanding.
President Buhari who made this known in Daura, Katsina State, implored parents to inculcate the right values in children, including deep fear of God, respect for constituted authorities and living a purposeful life through continuous education.
According to Garba Shehu, a presidential spokesman who posted the statement on his verified Twitter handle, the President, who was at the Emir of Daura’s Palace for the Sallah homage, said more time should be given to the coaching of the future leaders, with basic knowledge of moral values, as the fast-changing world, driven by new technology, would be more competitive and demanding.
The President was quoted as saying, “I was locked up for more than three years, after leading the country. At that point, I realised and I told my children that your net worth is what is in your head, not what you have acquired in life.
“My focus has always been on training the children to be relevant wherever they find themselves. I told my children, particularly the girls, that they can only get married after getting a first degree.
“They already know that I am not leaving anything for anyone to inherit. My greatest legacy to the children is to ensure they are properly educated,” he said.
“The younger children should be guided and taught history, as they would find it hard to be patriotic, responsible and respectful, without a thorough understanding of their backgrounds. Whoever does not have a good sense of history will easily make mistakes.
“We should ensure the children get proper education. The knowledge they acquire should not be towards getting government jobs. We don’t have jobs in government anymore. With technology, governments are becoming more smaller, nimble and efficient.”
“Emphasis should now be on skills acquisition and competence in creation and deployment of technology. During the Covid-19, we asked all level 12 downward to stay at home, and surprisingly the systems worked effectively,” the President noted.
The President told the Emir of Daura, Dr Faruk Umar Faruk, that he would be more regular in visits, preparatory to his handing over in May 2023, adding that the prolonged absence was due to the demands of his office.
“This is the longest I have been away from home. In fact, the Emir took to the court of public opinion at the prayer ground, when he openly told everyone that I had not visited Daura for close to a year,” he added.
President Buhari said all Nigerians must make sacrifices to move the country forward, especially the public servants, calling for more selflessness and inclusion.
“At the end, it is only God that can reward your efforts, not man,” he said.
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E2%80%99s-presidential-candidate%E2%80%99s-name-missing-inec-portal Sowore, AAC Refute Report Party’s Presidential Candidate’s Name Is Missing On INEC Portal
The Presidential Candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore and the political party have dismissed a report claiming the party is yet to submit names of candidates for the 2023 general elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
It was reported that AAC was yet to upload its governorship and state assembly candidates for the polls.
As provided for in the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General Election which INEC released in February 2022, all political parties that conducted valid primaries are required to nominate their candidates for Governorship, Deputy Governorship and State Assembly elections via the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal (ICNP) from 1st – 15th July 2022.
Reacting, Sowore described the report as fake, saying it should be dispelled in its entirety.
He said the AAC has submitted the names of over 60 candidates across Nigeria who are going to run for elections under the banner of the party.
“To be very clear, this has nothing to do with the presidential candidate and his vice,” the activist said.
“That has been submitted and resolved and their names have been published in all INEC offices across the country.
“So, we just trying to let you know that this is not correct, we have submitted over 60 candidates across Nigeria who are going to run election under the banner of the AAC.
“So, there is nothing to panic about and we hope INEC will take care of this and ensure they contact us in advance or check their records before going to the public to say AAC didn’t submit names of candidates.
“I was at INEC office today with the Secretary of the party to meet with the Director in charge of political parties. The EPM as he is well known, so please do not panic over this, the list of our candidates has been submitted to INEC portal.”WATCH: A response to INEC Nigeria on the allegation that @aacparty hasnâ??t submitted candidates on its portal! It is untrue and mischievous! #WeCantContinueLikeThis #SoworeForPresident #takeitback pic.twitter.com/StthKsJUOj— Omoyele Sowore (@YeleSowore) July 13, 2022
Femi Adeyeye, National Publicity Secretary of the party in a statement also said the names of Sowore and his vice-presidential candidate, Mr Haruna Magashi have been uploaded and approved on the INEC portal
The statement read, “We write to inform members of the public that the news making rounds that the particulars of our Presidential candidate, @YeleSowore have not been filled on the INEC portal, is FAKE & should be dispelled in its entirety.
“As of the time of writing this press release, a total of 84 names of candidates including Mr Omoyele Sowore
@YeleSowore and his vice-presidential candidate, Mr Haruna Magashi @haruna_magashi have been uploaded and approved on the INEC portal also pasted these names and particular in their offices nationwide.
“Another batch of over 200 candidates are undergoing the approval process in the party and definitely would meet up with the timeline set by INEC on July 15, 2022. Our party takes due diligence very seriously and Nigerians can be sure that the African Action Congress (AAC) won’t just upload and approve candidates like others; candidates who don’t have certificates, who lack character, competence and integrity.PRESS STATEMENTRE: SOWOREâ??S NAME MISSING ON INEC PORTAL.We write to inform members of the public that the news making rounds that the particulars of our Presidential candidate, @YeleSowore have not been filled on the INEC portal, is FAKE & should be dispelled in its entirety. pic.twitter.com/Tp8MH5QD09— African Action Congress #AAC (@aacparty) July 13, 2022
“We enjoin members of our great party @aacparty, candidates and members of the public to disregard the rumour. 6. We expect that INEC will lead the public correctly on issues concerning the party and on this particular issue, release a statement to put the body in correct light before Nigerians.”
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Ondo Commissioner, Yetunde Adeyanju, Resigns To Protest Her Redeployment to “Dry Land Ministry” From “Juicy One”
Ondo State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mrs Yetunde Adeyanju, on Wednesday, resigned her appointment shortly after she was moved to the ministry from one she considered to be juicy.
Until Wednesday, Adeyanju was the Commissioner for Water Resources and Sanitation.
Governor Rotimi Akeredolu had done a minor reshuffling of his cabinet and it required Adeyanju to be redeployed from the Ministry of Water and Sanitation to the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development.
Sources told SaharaReporters on Wednesday that the commissioner was displeased with the transfer from a ministry she had considered “juicy” and had been accustomed to, to a “dry land”.
“She (Adeyanju) resigned shortly after she was moved to another ministry she considered as dry land unlike she was coming from. She does not want the ministry where she was taken to and it didn’t take her time at all to tender her resignation. Obviously, her former ministry was like a gold mine for her,” a source said.
Adeyanju subsequently forwarded her resignation letter to the state governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN).
However, according to her, in the letter obtained by SaharaReporters, she resigned from her position as a commissioner to explore other sectors outside politics.
Her letter reads: “I hereby resign my appointment as a Commissioner in Ondo State with immediate effect. My decision is predicated on a personal conviction to explore other endeavours outside politics for now.”
“However, I’m grateful to you for the golden opportunity given to me to contribute to the growth of our dear state, especially with the Kamomi Aketi Rural Water Supply. You gave me the platform and I’m proud that I used it well for the good of humanity. Kamomi AKETI water scheme remains the joy of thousands of rural dwellers today,” she added.
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UK Campaign: Nigerian Politicians Use Public Funds As Private Piggy Bank, Promise Air But Pollute Political System With Failure – British-Nigerian, Kemi Badenoch
A former British Nigerian Minister in the UK, Kemi Badenoch, has lambasted Nigerian politicians, saying they use public funds as their private piggy banks and pollute the political system with failure to serve the people.
Badenoch, who is among the eight nominees in the race to succeed Boris Johnson as the British Prime Minister made the statement on Tuesday during her campaign speech.
The Nigerian-born woman who has served as Minister of State for Local Government, Faith and Communities and Minister of State for Equalities between 2021 and 2022 in the UK said she grew up in Nigeria and witnessed first-hand how Nigerian politicians misuse and mismanage public funds, promise heaven on earth only to pollute not only the air but the political system without rendering due service to the people.
Badenoch, who has also served as a member of Parliament for Saffron Walden since 2017 in the UK said she chose to hone her political career in the UK because the country’s system allows her to be free and become what she wants to be.
She said, “I’m running to be Prime Minister because when you are 42 years old, it is by definition, ambitious. But I am ambitious for our country and for our party.
“I chose to become a conservative MP to serve and I chose this country because here I could be free and I could become what I wanted to be.
“I grew up in Nigeria and I saw first-hand what happens when politicians are in for themselves. When they use public money as their private Piggy banks. When they promise the air but they pollute not only the air but the whole political system with a failure to serve others.
“I saw what socialism means for millions. It is poverty and broken dreams. I came to Britain determined to make my way in a country where hard work and honest endeavour can take you anywhere.”
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E2%80%99azu%E2%80%99s-nephew-abduct-three-family-members Gunmen Kill Former Bauchi Governor, Adamu Mu’azu’s Nephew, Abduct Three Family Members
Gunmen suspected to be Islamic terrorists have reportedly killed 25-year-old Mu’azu Danladi, a relation of ex-Governor Adamu Mu’azu at Boto village in the Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
Danladi was reportedly killed by the terrorists in the early hours of Wednesday when they invaded the residence of Mu’azu’s family members.
The terrorists who were said to have targeted the former governor’s children also abducted three relations during the attack which took the villagers by surprise.
Among the abductees, according to Daily Trust are – Hajiya Asma’u Alhaji Adamu, the younger sister of the ex-governor, Malama Halima Abdullahi and one Nura.
An eyewitness, Hashimu Abubakar Boto, who narrated the incident said, “The gunmen came around 1 am and went straight to the house where my brother used to sleep. They broke the gate and started asking him where the ex-governor’s children or grandchildren were? They searched the house but couldn’t find anyone, that was how they shot him in the head and abducted three family members.”
The mother of the deceased person, Hajiya Sa’adatu Adamu Mua’zu, described her son as kind, obedient and religious.
The grieving mother said, “My son was kind, obedient and religious. He focused on his daily activities; he didn’t involve himself in any fights with his brothers and neighbours.
“My last encounter with him was last night when he showed me the picture of his sister who is studying in Uganda and asked me about his Sallah meat, that was my last moment with him.”
Auwalu Abdullahi Adamu, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Youth leader at Kardam B Ward, whose mother is one of the abductees, said he was sleeping in his house when he heard gunshots.
Umar Adamu Mua’zu, younger brother of the ex-governor, said the kidnappers first went to the house of his elder brother, Abdurrashid Adamu Mua’zu, thinking he was there for Sallah.
He said the kidnappers had not contacted family members for ransom, disclosing that all the phone numbers of the victims were switched off.
The Bauchi State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Ahmed Mohammed Wakil, who confirmed the incident to SaharaReporters on the telephone, said the command was working to rescue the victims and bring the perpetrators to justice.
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Traders Count Losses As Fire Destroys Ebonyi Market
Fire has razed down a section of Eke Market, a major market in Afikpo town, Afikpo North local government of Ebonyi State.
The inferno which reportedly occurred on Tuesday evening destroyed several shops and goods worth millions of naira. The cause of the fire according to Vanguard was not yet known. Meanwhile, traders have been counting their losses.
SaharaReporters gathered that the Ebonyi State Fire Service Unit in Afikpo could not mobilise to put out the raging fire because its equipment was reportedly not functional.
The Executive Chairman of Afikpo North Local Government Area, Oby Oko Enyim arrived at the scene of the incident at about 6:35 am on Wednesday.
Enyim sympathised with the victims and expressed confidence that there was hope for them despite the tragedy.
Enyim who was taken around the scene of the fire disaster by the Chairman of Afikpo Market Traders Association, AMATA, Omezue Johnson Inya Oka described the incident as pathetic.
Meanwhile, Lilian Ngozi Eziuloh, member representing Afikpo North East Constituency, Ebonyi State House of Assembly also sympathised with the victims of the fire outbreak.
“I sympathise with victims of Afikpo fire outbreak that took place at Eke Market Motor Park at about 10 pm on 12th July 2022. With a sincere heart filled with sympathy and empathy knowing full well the consequences of this disaster on those directly affected, I pray you shall recover all you have lost in Jesus’ name Amen.
“To Afikpo youths who volunteered to quench the fire amidst the intensity and absence of Fire service at the time they were most needed, God will reward you here on Earth and in Heaven for your contribution in communal and selfless service to save humanity,” she said.
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Lawyers File Bail Application For Take-It-Back Coordinator, Aghogho, Illegally Arrested By Police Over Call For Probe Into Child Trafficking Case In Delta
Ighorhiohwunu Aghogho
Lawyers supported by Legal Aid, Citizens Gravel Foundation for Social Justice have filed a bail application for the release of Delta State Take-It-Back Coordinator, Ighorhiohwunu Aghogho from prison.
The bail application dated 27th June 2022 was filed on 1st July 2022 at the Registry of the Federal High Court, Warri.
Ighorhiohwunu Aghogho
In the suit numbered FHC/WR/CS/51/2022, the lawyers demanded the release of Aghogho from Ogwashi-Uku Correctional Centre (Prison).
The court document read, “Grounds for the Relief(s) sought are (1) On or about the 8th day of June 2022, the Applicant was remanded at Ogwashi-Uku Correctional Centre (Prison) by the Order of P. U. Nsolo (Mrs) of the Magistrate Court 1 sitting at Asaba on the guise of holding charge pursuant to sections 293 and 294 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) of Delta State. (2) By the said sections of the ACJL, the order made on or about 8/6/2022 has a lifespan of 14 days and was unprofessionally extended to 8/6/2022 by P.U Nsolo (Mrs) on 24/6/2022 without the court sitting.
“(3) The Order has expired since on 24/6/2022 and there is no valid order of court extending the remand order since the Court did not sit. (4) That to date, the Delta State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mrs Efe Odogwu Jesin Odogwu has failed to and /or file any charge against the Applicant (Aghogho) if she wishes to prosecute the Applicant.
“(5) This Court has the power to release the Applicant on the circumstance on bail pending the DPP advice or prosecution (if any). (6) The applicant is an asthmatic patient and needs to be released so he can properly treat himself. (7) The applicant is innocent of the offence with which he is being accused of and ought to be granted bail unconditionally. The applicant is ready to stand trial at any time if called upon to do so.”
The case is yet to be fixed for hearing
The activist had been at loggerheads with the police in the state after he protested the lack of police vehicles for an investigation involving child trafficking.
He specifically accused the Assistant Inspector General, Zone 5 Benin, Lawan Tanko Jimeta of compromising an ongoing child trafficking investigation involving Delta State Government officials, police officers, and a retired chief judge among others.
In a petition to the Inspector General of Police, Baba Usman, the activist alleged that Jimeta tried everything possible to frustrate investigations into the case, urging the IGP to caution the AIG “if he the IGP is not part of the deal as officers in the zone boast about”.
He was on June 6, 2022, arrested in commando style not befitting the Nigeria Police Force.
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Founding APC Member, Yahaya-Kwande Dumps Party, Says Party Has No Regard For People Outside Realm Of Power
Suleiman Yahaya-Kwande, who served as a two-term member of the House of Representatives, representing Bassa/Jos North Federal constituency of Plateau State, has dumped the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).Kwande was among the founding members of the party in 2013 and was an active member of the ‘Change Movement’ during the 2015 election.
He made this announcement in a letter dated July 4, 2022 and addressed to his ward chairman, saying the ruling party has considered him an outcast because he is not within the realm of power.He also wished the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu, well in the 2023 election.His resignation letter read, “It is with a heavy heart that I write to formally notify you of my decision to resign my membership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the recent events has (sic) left me feeling like an outcast and it seems that the party has no regard or use for those outside the corridor of power. “However, I wish to sincerely state here that I hold no ill feelings, resentment or grudges against anyone or group of individuals. I sincerely appreciate the party Executives at the Ward, Local, State and National level for their support and the opportunity to serve.“I wish all the APC flag bearers, especially H.E Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Dr. Nentawe Yilwatda who I both hold in high esteem best of luck ahead of the 2023 general elections.”
Yahaya-Kwande was a member, House of Representatives 7th and 8th Assemblies, Bassa/Jos North Federal Constituency, Plateau State.In February, Yahaya-Kwande and Aku who resigned as Plateau Commissioner for Commerce and Industry to contest for the seat, claimed victory in the APC primaries for Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency.The primaries to determine who would fly the party’s flag in the February 26 by-election organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ended without a winner. “From the results as collated, Suleiman Kwande scored 344 votes while Mr Abe Aku also scored 344 votes. We will relay the outcome to the national secretariat of APC to take the next decision,” the Chairman of APC Electoral Committee for the primaries, Mr Habu Ajiya, had said.Hence, Yahaya-Kwande expressed disappointment with the outcome of the election, saying that in the first instance, the election started far behind schedule for inexplicable reasons.“I don’t know how it will be a tie. As far as I am concerned, I won fair and square.“I know what I was up against, I know the forces that were against me and I was ready for them.“I entered the election as a free citizen, nobody can coerce me to do what I want to do or do what I don’t want to do.This made some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Bassa//Jos North federal constituency appeal to the national secretariat of the party, asking it to declare Yahaya-Kwande as the winner of its 1st/2nd February 2022 primary election.But eventually, the party gave the ticket to Mr Abe Aku. Meanwhile, the candidate of the PDP, Musa Avia Agah won the bye-election held on Saturday 26, February 2022, having scored 40, 343 to beat the PRP candidate, Muhammad Alkali who scored 37, 757 votes and Abe Aku of the ruling APC scored 26, 111 votes.
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Nigeria, Choose Your Poison, By Cheta Nwanze
In an ideal situation, a Muslim-Muslim ticket or a Christian-Christian ticket should not be a problem if the two candidates on the ticket are good. But having said that, Nigeria is far from ideal, and the current Nigeria is) very different from the Nigeria of 1993 where Abiola and Kingibe were clearly heads and shoulders above Toga and Ugoh. That Nigeria was also a more forgiving place when you consider that said Sylvester Ugoh was, just over a quarter of a century before, the Governor of the Bank of Biafra, but that is a digression. The Nigeria of today is a hateful place that is coming out of two terms of 97% and 5% division, where it has been made clear that if you are Igbo, or you are a Northern Christian, you do not belong. How else do we explain sermons such as this: is a widely spoken language, so translations shouldn’t be in short supply. How else do you explain that people like Danladi Umar, Remi Tinubu, Abu Malami tarred an entire ethnic group with what is not short of hate speech, but to date have not been censured much less punished? Do you remember the Danladi Umar story? He assaulted someone, got attacked by a mob (made up of Northerners) and in order to deflect from what he did, labelled the mob as “Biafra boys”. This is what both the APC and PDP have done in this election cycle, they have further strained the already torn fabric of unity that the country has. Let’s start with the PDP: the PDP’s legitimacy rested on the principle of power rotation. Back in 1999, they gave this power to the South-West despite Alex Ekwueme being an early front-runner. There was an implicit agreement that power would rotate to the North after Obasanjo, then to the South-South, then back North, and then to the South-East. Then Yar’Adua died, and we were faced with a quandary. The South-South got pushed in before their expected 2015 time, and then in 2011, GEJ ran rather than “returning power to the North”. It was this very action that made people like Atiku leave the PDP. Given that Atiku was crying for fairness, how then is it fair that after two terms of power in the North, when it, presumably, is the turn of the South-East, are we suddenly hearing arguments about “competence” and “that the rotation has ended” et al? Why didn’t they say so in 2019? With the PDP’s stance and the real prospect of a Nigerian of Fulani extraction following a Nigerian of Fulani extraction into the Villa, we would set a precedent where power rotation amongst ethnicities, which is a very important aspect of national unity in a diverse country?-?a sense of inclusiveness, dies. An Atiku victory next year means that there is absolutely nothing stopping an Abu Malami or a Nasir El-Rufai from trying their luck in 2027 or 2031 (if Atiku somehow serves two terms) and bringing up the same arguments that Atiku has used now. After all, a precedent has been set. For the APC, the party has, in a time of religious frayed nerves around the country and pandered to an extreme section of the argument. That section, as the video I linked to earlier shows, has made it abundantly clear that Northern Christians do not matter in the scheme of things. There is already a precedent, it was set by Kaduna. Prior to the exit of Yusuf Bantex in 2019, Kaduna had an uneasy arrangement where a Muslim is the governor and a Christian is the deputy. El-Rufai shattered that when he picked Hadiza Balarabe to succeed Bantex, and now, Sani Uba, El-Rufai’s anointed successor, has gone ahead to pick a Muslim as his running mate. Essentially, Christians in Kaduna have been relegated from de facto second-class citizens to de jure second-class citizens. This is what will happen if the Tinubu-Shettima alliance wins next year. In 2027 or 2031, a Northern Muslim candidate will pick a Southern Muslim as his running mate and couch his choice in the idea of “competence” and it would be set in stone going forward. That is what precedent achieves. Now ask yourself this question?-?will anyone in Muslim Northern Nigeria accept a Christian-Christian candidacy for the presidency? As for the Peter Obi candidacy, my earlier argument about Mr Obi’s ethnic nationality still stands: . You can see it in the attempts by supporters of both major parties to tie him to IPOB and link him with Biafra and separatism despite the fact that no record exists anywhere of him being tied to that agitation. It is ironic when you consider that multiple streams of innuendo have linked Kashim Shettima with Boko Haram, yet it didn’t matter. I still maintain that an Igbo man succeeding the disaster that Buhari has been would bring problems for the Igbo people. Perhaps it’s my paranoia as an Igbo person that was born in the decade after the War ended and grew up surrounded by people who survived the most brutal massacre of that war, and so heard all their stories . Paradoxically though, in the Nigeria of today, the anti-Igbo sentiments that would certainly arise if Peter Obi wins would bring immediate problems for everyone as the country’s so-called unity has been so frayed that even the regular glue of anti-Igbo sentimentality would not nearly be enough to bring the other groups together. An Atiku or Tinubu victory would bring problems in four years. Problems that would probably be of a greater magnitude as they would be existential (does Nigeria belong to one ethnic group? or does it belong to one religion?) and given that both men just want to be President to fulfil lifelong ambitions and not much more, would have been built on top of four more years of rot. Whichever option we choose next year, we are ****ed. The locust years of Buhari have guaranteed that. It’s just for us to choose our poison. A bullet to the head? Or death by a thousand cuts. Nwanze is a partner at SBM Intelligence
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Udom Sues Electoral Body, INEC For Failing To Release Certified True Copies Of Reports For APC Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial Primary To Favour Party’s Choice Of Buhari’s Ex-Minister, Akpabio
The Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Udom Ekpoudom has sued the Independent National Electoral Commission for failing to release the Certified True Copies of reports of the party’s primary despite several letters from his lawyers. Udom won the primary election for Akwa Ibom North-West which was monitored by INEC officials.
However, Godswill Akpabio was declared the winner of another primary shortly after stepping down for former Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu at the APC presidential primary election held in Abuja, on June 8.
Akpabio had resigned from President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs to contest the presidential primaries.
Mike Igini, resident electoral commissioner (REC) of Akwa Ibom, had said the exercise which produced the former minister as a candidate wasn’t monitored by the commission. Section 31 of the Electoral Act only allows for substitution when a candidate dies or when they withdraw from the race and inform INEC in writing. The section reads: “A candidate may withdraw his or her candidature by notice in writing signed by him and delivered personally by the candidate to the political party that nominated him for the election and the political party shall convey such withdrawal to the commission not later than 90 days to the election.” Section 29 (4) of the Electoral Act also provides that any person may apply to the Commission for a copy of the nomination form, affidavit, and any other document submitted by a candidate at an election and the Commission shall, upon payment of a prescribed fee, issue such person with a certified copy of the document within 14 days. In a suit filed by his lawyers at the Federal High Court, Udom asked the court to compel INEC to avail him of all the documents. Joined in the suit is the ruling party, APC. The court papers read that Udom is seeking: “AN ORDER directing the 2nd Defendant to produce certified true copies of the following documents and avail the plaintiff/applicant with the same at or before the hearing of the substantive suit. viz “The official report of the Commission (INEC) of the primary election of the All Progressives Congress for the Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District for the 2023 General Election. “The letter/form of the All Progressives Congress submitting the name of the party’s candidate for the Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District for the 2023 General Election. “INEC Timetable and Schedule of activities for 2023 General Elections. AND FOR SUCH FURTHER ORDER (S) this Honorable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.” SaharaReporters on Thursday, June 23, 2022, reported that aggrieved members of APC had accused INEC of failing to release the Certified True Copies of reports of the party’s primaries despite several letters from their lawyers.According to them, the Electoral Party Monitoring (EPM) and legal departments of INEC refused to issue the CTC of the primary elections monitored by the electoral body to enable them to proceed to court to challenge the removal of their names from the list submitted by the APC leadership. “The Independent National Electoral Commission Electoral Party Monitoring and legal departments are as usual frustrating aggrieved party members of the APC in particular and other individuals whose lawyers have applied for CTC of the election monitored by INEC to enable them to proceed to court to challenge the removal of their names from the list submitted to INEC,” a lawyer representing one of the aggrieved members had said.“The report of the primary election of Senate President Ahmad Lawan, Godswill Akpabio and other people of interest to some leaders of APC are not being released by the EPM and legal even when the INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu has directed. However, he does not check if his directive has been carried out typical of a civil servant because of vested interest.“The commission is now engaging in a hide-and-seek game despite the public declaration of abdication of its power to reject candidates that didn’t participate in primaries.“An umpire in total disregard of the sanctity of its role as an independent umpire has embarked on a policy of deliberate delay in issuing certified true copies of reports of the commission necessary for litigants to approach the courts.“Our sources in INEC and investigations show that this is in connivance with powerful individuals in the APC who already bought their ways in the commission in order to frustrate the course of justice. Shamefully all of this is happening under the direct watch of the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu. There is no gain saying that if this ugly development is not urgently arrested, it portends a great threat to our already faltering democracy.” There have been controversies surrounding the names of some candidates who contested the presidential elections like the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, the Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, and Akpabio, whose names resurfaced on the senatorial list even though they were not the winners of their senatorial primaries. Bashir Machina had won the party’s ticket for Yobe North Senatorial District, while Udom Ekpoudom won the primary for Akwa Ibom North-West which was monitored by INEC officials.
For Lawan, Machina had insisted he would not step down for the senate president.
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