Connect with us

Opinion

Soludo campaign on course after clearing INEC legal hurdle

Published

on

S0LUDO

 

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday, August 19, 2021, released a revised list of candidates for the November 6, 2021 governorship election in Anambra State.

The new list released after a meeting held by the electoral body in Abuja, contained the name of Prof. Charles Soludo as the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). Soludo’s name was a replacement for Michael Umeoji who was earlier listed as APGA’s candidate.

INEC had in its first list of Anambra governorship candidates, recognized Umeoji as the candidate of APGA on account of a Jigawa High Court judgement in favour of the Jude Okeke-led faction of the party. Soludo’s name and particulars with that of his running mate, Dr. Onyekachikwu Ibezim, forwarded to INEC within the period for submission by Chief Victor Oye, believed to be the properly elected national chairman of APGA, was ignored by the electoral body.

Speaking on the latest development, Festus Okoye, INEC’s commissioner for information and voter education, said the new list of candidates was as a result of a superior court order received by the commission on APGA, as well as substitution of candidates’ names by different political parties.

Okoye said INEC was served with the verdict of the Kano Division of Court of Appeal, which set aside the earlier judgement of the Jigawa High Court on APGA leadership. Hence, the election management body had no choice than to comply by enlisting Soludo’s name as originally submitted by the Oye-led camp.

Reacting to INEC’s compliance with the ruling of the Kano appellate court, the Oye-led APGA, in a statement by the national publicity secretary, Barrister Tex Okechukwu, applauded the electoral umpire for publishing the name of Soludo and Ibezim as the governorship and deputy governorship candidates of the party for the Anambra gubernatorial election.

APGA expressed great delight that after weeks of suspense and bewilderment, INEC had brought some relief by obeying the Kano Court of Appeal judgment. The party, however, lamented that “the electoral body almost destroyed the nation’s democracy by publishing the name of somebody who had no business being there in the first place.” It congratulated millions of its supporters for their steadfastness, courage and loyalty to APGA.

READ  BBNaija Shine Ya Eye: Queer Queen craves threesome with two men

Tex said: “We thank our numerous supporters, well-wishers and friends across party lines for standing by us throughout the trying period.”

Congratulating Soludo and Ibezim on the feat and praying God to bless and keep them for the task ahead, he added: “Together we will work to repeat the 21/21 record we set in 2017, because our government in Anambra State has performed creditably.”

The news of the inclusion of Soludo’s name on the INEC revised list as the authentic candidate of APGA was reportedly greeted with jubilation among the party members and government officials in Anambra State.

A special assistant on media to Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, Mr. Chidiebele Obika, for instance, was reported to have described INEC’s recognition of the erstwhile Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, as the best news of the year, noting that it was a good omen for APGA.

But the decision of INEC did not go down well with Umeoji. He condemned the removal of his name from the modified list, arguing that the electoral agency’s action was in contempt of a valid order of the Owerri High Court, which affirmed his candidacy. In the same vein, Okeke, said he would institute contempt proceedings against the electoral body, insisting that Umeoji is the standard-bearer of APGA in the November 6 guber poll.

According to him, “The Court of Appeal Kano Division did not make any finding that Victor Oye is Chairman or that Prof. Soludo is candidate of our Party. The Court only set aside the judgment of the Jigawa High Court for want of jurisdiction.

“In the absence of any direct order by the Appeal Court, the judgment that conclusively determines the question of who is Chairman and Candidate of APGA is the judgment B. C. Iheka of the Owerri High Court reaffirmed by Justice V. C. Isiguzo of the same High Court.

“Both the judgment and order from the Honorable justices of the Owerri High Court had been served on INEC before this contemptuous action of changing the name of our candidate.”

READ  PDP governors to meet Monday

The said Owerri High Court judgement, now being relied on by the Okeke camp (after the nullification of the Jigawa High Court order), to maintain that Umeoji remains the APGA candidate was given on July 28 and reaffirmed by the same court (not a higher court) a day before INEC released the new list.

Observers have wondered how Okeke would be threatening INEC with contempt proceedings in respect of an Owerri High Court order when the commission simply acted in line with a superior court ruling that quashed the previous Jigawa High Court judgement it obeyed to publish Umeoji’s name in the first list released on July 16. How would INEC be seen if it discards the Kano appeal court judgement and works with the Owerri High Court order on the APGA leadership tussle?

It sounds illogical and preposterous to many political watchers that Okeke and his group could still be talking about a High Court judgement even after the Kano Court of Appeal has clearly settled the matter on APGA leadership with the invalidation of the Jigawa High Court verdict.

The Appeal Court sitting in Kano had on August 10, overturned the Jigawa High Court judgement delivered on 30th June, instructing INEC to acknowledge the Okeke faction of APGA. The appellate court justices, in their ruling, unanimously held that the Jigawa High Court had no territorial and substantive jurisdiction to entertain the case in the first place. The justices were reported to have declared Okeke and his group as “meddlesome interlopers” and asked the electoral body not to recognize their faction.

The Okeke camp had instructed their lawyers to proceed to the Supreme Court to appeal the Kano appellate court verdict. Informed analysts therefore feel that the appropriate thing to do is for the Okeke group to await the outcome of their appeal at the apex court, rather than trying to needlessly intimidate INEC with a lower court order.

Meanwhile, the Oye-headed APGA has inaugurated the National Campaign Council of Soludo as the authentic candidate of the party ahead of the governorship poll. Governor Obiano performed the inauguration with himself as the Chairman.

READ  2023: INEC releases guidelines for political campaigns, party expenses

Other members of the campaign council are the national chairman, Oye, Deputy Governor Nkem Okeke, Obiano’s wife, Ebele, APGA national secretary, Mr. Labaran Maku and ex-APGA national chairman, Senator Victor Umeh. The Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Prof. Solo Chukwulobelu, is the Director-General of the campaign committee, which has top government and party officials as members.

Oye at the inauguration said APGA was poised to emerge victorious in the guber election with every legal obstacle out of the way, stressing that no force would stop the will of the masses at the polls. Describing the combination of Soludo and Ibezim as formidable, he said: “Having done well, the governor (Obiano) prayed for a successful successor and that prayer has been answered because Soludo has come to conquer. He will succeed Obiano and deliver on all his campaign promises.”

Umeh, the Chairman, APGA Peace and Reconciliation Committee, congratulated Oye’s leadership for making sure INEC acknowledged Soludo as the duly nominated candidate of the party. The former parliamentarian said Soludo’s candidacy was a collective decision of the leadership and stakeholders of APGA.

He said: “When we chose Soludo as the Governorship Candidate of our party, it was a careful decision made by the party including the Leader (Governor Obiano) who pointed at him as his worthy successor. We followed suit in endorsing him, supporting him and voting for him massively at the primary conducted on the 23rd of June 2021.

“During the time of publishing names of candidates, there was a twist and Soludo’s name was missing, but the party came together and fought for it and eventually the Court Of Appeal in Kano did justice to the matter paving the way for the publication of his name. That is why I am congratulating the party for this feat. Only by this act yesterday, the confusion that has been raining in the media has been effectively arrested. Prof Soludo is the Candidate, he is going to contest the election on November 6th and he is going to win with APGA!”

Michael Jegede, a journalist writes from FCT-Abuja

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Opinion

Desperate Aiyedatiwa bares fangs inside Govt House chapel

Published

on

By

 

  • Appoints Self General Overseer
    Installs Indian Marabouts As Clergymen
    Stops Pastors from Wearing Cassocks

Nebuchadnezzar, infamous figure immortalized in the Bible, commands recognition as the Babylonian monarch whose relentless conquests laid waste to the temple of Jerusalem, seizing its sacred relics as spoils of war.

Nebuchadnezzar dreams of a great tree that shelters the whole world. But an angelic “watcher” appears and decrees that the tree must be cut down and that for seven years, he will have his human mind taken away and will eat grass like an ox.

 

The holy Bible generously describes and expounds a Chapel or Temple as the hallowed sanctuary of the Almighty. It is reserved for the reverential observance of sacred rites and solemn covenants deemed too divine for mundane settings. In all Chapels or Temples all over the world, these consecrated edifices are sanctuaries apart, shielded from the profane clamor of the secular world.

 

But an archetype of Nebuchadnezzar may have surreptitiously crept into Ondo without anyone noticing. While asking questions on what motivated the biblical Nebuchadnezzar to desecrate the holy Chapel or Temple of God, we are compelled to confront the actions of His Excellency (Hon.) Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa vis-à-vis the recent happenings inside the Government House Chapel.

READ  PDP governors to meet Monday

 

In a bold and audacious move that is only comparable to that of Nebuchadnezzar, Governor Aiyedatiwa decreed that ordained priests, including Rev. Babalola of the Anglican Communion and Canon Enoch Adeleke of the Methodist Church, discard their traditional vestments, known as Casoc, in favor of resplendent native attire—Agbada & Sokoto—during sacred ceremonies.

 

This sweeping directive challenges the entrenched doctrines upheld by Orthodox Churches, igniting a maelstrom of doubt and apprehension. Many ponder whether this decree signals a bid to sideline and subjugate Christians within the precincts of the Ondo State Government House, potentially paving the way for the infiltration of unfamiliar beliefs.

 

It is important to note that the Government House Chapel predates Governor Aiyedatiwa’s tenure. It is equally worthy of note to state that none of his predecessor, be it an Executive Governor or Military Administrator, had dared to enact such a seismic shift from the norm.

 

The questions presently agitating the minds of Christians within and outside Ondo state is if the Governor would have dared to wield such authority within a Mosque?

READ  INEC issues certificates of return to Tinubu, Shettima (PHOTOS)

 

In response to this seismic upheaval, Christians across Ondo State and beyond are implored to maintain vigilance. The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) must rise up against what is perceived as a grievous affront to the tenets of Christianity.

 

Adding to the intrigue, Aiyedatiwa proclaimed one fateful morning that he had been anointed by God to assume the mantle of General Overseer (GO) of the chapel. His subsequent participation in conducting last week’s Sunday service casts doubt upon his jurisdiction in matters of faith, casting a pall of uncertainty over Orthodox Churches.

 

But beyond this, the governor is said to have imported some strange-looking Marabouts to form part of the. An inside source disclosed that the men were indeed imported from India as part of a larger team of prayer warriors ahead of the governorship primary election of the All Progressives Congress.

 

An elder in the chapel, who pleaded not to be named, said the governor has become paranoid about how church matters are are run in the chapel.

READ  APC best political platform to bring development to Nigeria – Buhari

 

“It is surprising what is driving the governor recently. He is carrying out changes that are aliens to the order of service in the chapel. Recently, some strange people were brought into the chapel. Some people said they were part of of his prayer warriors. It was later that we gathered that they were from India. We have never seen anything like this before,” the elder said.

 

Continue Reading

Opinion

Ondo 2024: Aiyedatiwa gets desperate, dangles Port Ondo contract before prominent Yoruba monarch for presidency support

Published

on

By

 

  • Promise of 25% equity stake
    Desperate to meet Tinubu and Southwest governors for support.
    Top Ondo Obas frowns at the idea

Ondo State governor, Lucky Ayedatiwa has become hyper desperate ahead of the the governorship primaries of the All Progressives Congress ( APC) in April.

Inside sources have revealed that the governor, as part of his desperate search for the party’s ticket, has made the contract for the construction of Port Ondo as a bargaining chip to the Oni of Ife, his Imperial Majesty, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, to help secure the support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR and the South West Governors.

 

The deal, according to impeccable sources, was brokered by the two prominent Yoruba politicians (names withheld) who had stood with Ayedatiwa in his recent political battle against his former boss and benefactor, late Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, CON.

 

Reports have it that, Aiyedatiwa became desperate after several failed attempts to get the President’s attention over his ambition. He reportedly ran to a former governor of Ondo State, who according to information, has become his godfather and Chief Strategist.

READ  BBNaija Shine Ya Eye: Queer Queen craves threesome with two men

 

The former governor was said to have secured the assistance of an Osun State-born former Secretary of the APC. At the meeting, which was held at the private quarters of the Oni of Ife, he was asked to provide an opportunity for Aiyedatiwa to meet President Tinubu and the governors of the South West.

 

Among the issues discussed at the meeting was how to overlook Aiyedatiwa’s alleged ‘sins’ to Akeredolu, during and after his death.

 

However, as at the time of filing this report, some prominent monarchs in Ondo State are said to have gotten wind of the plan and are said to be spoiling for a fight.

 

A source, who did not want to be metioned, said the action of the governor is already causing a lot of anger and bad blood among the monarchs in the Sunshine State.

Continue Reading

Opinion

OF OTA-FRIENDS AND ORE-NEMIES OF AKETI- END OF THE EMERGENCY BEARD OF LUCKY AYEDATIWA

Published

on

By

 

By Sola Ajisafe, Esq

” The worth of a man is not in the vastness of his estate or the fatness of his vault but in the totality of his character and serenity of his inner being” – Anonymous

 

Last week, I called out our Governor about the whereabouts of his wife, our First Lady and why the “Oza room” had been empty. Nothing of note came out from him or his aides that tends to answer the relevant question. This is a common practice in the media orgy coupled together currently around the Governor. They will “leave ete to be treating lapalapa”.

 

Just like the ridiculous Press Statement about the clownish violence perpetrated on his other contestants during the President’s visit or the anti- Aketi executive poorly put together by Lucky. Wetin be my own? Today, my attention is to ask Mr. Governor ” Where is your Aketi beard?

 

The disappearance of Lucky’s beards is a significant pointer to how fake, unreliable and fluid our Governor is as a person. The open celebration and association with Aketi arch enemies, betrayers and discredited individuals in his newly inaugurated Executive is a pointer to what to expect in that government. Aside from a few individuals, that teal lack character and content. Anyway, (10) months no be anybody’s friend. E no dey play o.

 

Mr. Governor, it was not news that on your return from your long Abuja trip with your “Abuja activists”, the first thing Ondo State people noticed was that you have changed your looks and the Aketi beard had disappeared. If there was anything to point to the fact that the romance between you and your boss had ended, it was that change of personality. When on the day you addressed a press conference asking for forgiveness it was clear that you were playing with our intelligence as a people.

READ  INEC issues certificates of return to Tinubu, Shettima (PHOTOS)

 

I know as of a fact that in Nigeria of today, everything is cruise, just like most politicians in Nigeria are petty traders. They lack originality, political ideology and are bereft of sound intellectual understanding of what it means to be politically straightforward and upright. They are duplicious in their actions and profoundly vague in their thoughts. They are not better than Aba/Onitsha or China ( Chinco) products usually referred to as ” baruf” (fake) during our secondary school days.

When the going was good

I said Nigerian politicians are cruise chasers. The current vogue of wearing Awo or Afenifere cap remains a valid example. At a point in time, every manner of persons adopted it as their passport to enter the progressive palour. As they come in many colours and shapes so are the baboon elements and their virtues. They only take to mind the shapes and the embossed scollopings. They do not come an inch close to what it represents. Many of them and the ” alright sir boys” around Alagbaka government house/office have the same mental attributes except that one give alms while the other takes. All na same.

 

Just like the Awo cap, some elements within the Akeredolu government picked up the tendency of wearing beards immediately Aketi came on board in 2017. Not long after some of them could not maintain the discipline and tenacity that came with having the Fidel Castro or Che Guevara beard. That was what Aketi carried as far back as his days in the University or shortly thereafter. Time and age enveloped it and turned it to a Father Christmas on him.

READ  Anambra Guber Election: INEC expresses readiness for polls

 

Our Governor, Hon. Lucky Ayedatiwa was one of those that started the culture of wearing beards like Aketi. He was helped by time and age so he does not have to add anything to make it white. Yet, “abinibi” is quite different from “ability”. While Aketi’s beard was custom made, those of the copy cats were as fake as the products of “Yaba Apa Otun, Katangua or Oshodi under bridge”where tokunbo clothes and materials are sold.

With Aketi’s beards
The story here is not just about wearing a beard to look like your boss. I used to pity these imitators in those early days of the Aketi government. They do not carry those beards because it fits them or that they were comfortable. They carried it to show off their loyalty. I have seen people move from one politically exposed person and one party to another wearing the badge of their loyalty like an insignia of office only to take to flight immediately something happened. I have heard people tell me ” I will read Aketi like a book for eight (8) years, only to take to flight having realized that the man is nearing his end. They divulged his medical history to his ” ota-friends” and ” ore-nemies”.

 

For instance, who would believe that Hon. Lucky Ayedatiwa will so soon return almost clean shaven from his haitus in Abuja without the ” emergency beards” that he wore so much and faithfully when he was stalking Aketi and his family to get political relevance. Immediately he got what he wanted and he learnt from the snitches who report every action of Aketi to him he “dis-beard” himself from Aketi and became the Lucky of the emergency activists both in Abuja and in Ondo State.

READ  2023: INEC releases guidelines for political campaigns, party expenses

 

For me, loyalty is not something to be worn like a badge or rendered like a song. Loyalty does not mean you cannot quarrel or disagree on principle. It also does not mean you should be a slave. However, loyalty means “one for all, all for one”. When it’s comfortable or not comfortable.

 

Every leader and influential person must learn something from the life and times of Aketi. Human beings love what they can get from you. They do not care about you so soon you are no longer useful to them or you no longer posses the capacity to do things for them.

 

I call on everyone that still has a dint of humanity in them and felt a hunch for Aketi and decided to stay with him during his trying period and are been persecuted to know that a new dawn is in the offing. And for those who benefitted from Aketi but contributed towards his death by their actions and deeds or are determined to destroy his legacy or are willing to forget the good old days to note that Karma is a bitch and so unforgiven. Just take note of my words.

The disappearance of Lucky’s “Aketi beard” was too sudden. It showed there was no altruism in it in the first place.

 

Continue Reading

Trending News