All Progressives Congress (APC)

The All Progressives Congress, Friday, began lifting of faithful electorate from Ox-Bow Lakes in Yenegoa to riverine areas in southern Ijaw ahead of tomorrow’s guber poll in Bayelsa State. 

The electorate, comprising some family members, were not wearing live jackets in case of emergency. 

Leading Reporters learnt that the passengers of the mega boat, called Cameroonian boat with two decks, were being conveyed free of charge, with eating and drinking provisions. 

Some officials of APC in the state were seen monitoring the passengers to ensure that they were indeed going to vote for their guber candidate, Timipre Sylva.

She said, “I am from Akasa Clan, in Oginibri community in Brass LGA. We are moving to our different communities to vote tomorrow. We are going to deliver our candidate in our respective units. We have local boats to convey our supporters only. We have speed boats, but they are not enough because we have many eligible voters who want to travel. 

“Some of the boats have left, I mean the big ones that can carry over 300 persons. It is free; already paid for by party stakeholders. Our expectation is to deliver our units for our guber candidate. We are not going to fight. Politics is a diverse game, but we assure there will be peace. Everybody here is APC. We know them from Adam.

“There are provisions for food and drinks. There will be cash allowances. Everyone you see here has their names written. Once funds are released, we share equitably.

“I advise my people to support APC. They should avoid being moles. We are not doing it for money but for our party and candidates.”

On why the passengers do not wear live vests, she said, “People can provide their respective vests in case of emergency. But it is only in speed boats that every passenger is expected to have one. This one is called ‘love’ boat because it is not as fast as speed boats.”

A group, Onwa Progressives 2023, have accused the opposition in Imo State of destroying campaign billboards belonging to the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate and incumbent governor of Imo State Hope Uzodimma.

The group, which said it is disappointed and frustrated over the incident, described the vandalism as an attack on democracy and a blatant disregard for freedom of expression and political campaigning.

In a statement issued by the group’s chairman, Augustus Nduka, it called for a thorough investigation into the matter, with the hope of bringing those responsible to justice.

It stated that in the bustling heart of Owerri metropolis, the campaign materials of Governor Uzodimma were vandalised by alleged agents of opposition political parties.

They said the A-frame boards were strategically positioned throughout Owerri, serving as essential campaign tools to communicate the government’s achievements and programmes to the people of Imo State.

These visually appealing structures featured captivating designs and colourful messages that highlighted the accomplishments and future plans of the Uzodimma administration.

Nduka however said, “The governor has consistently stressed his commitment to peaceful elections and urged all political parties and their supporters to engage in healthy competition free from violence or vandalism. It is shocking to witness the reckless destruction of campaign materials belonging to the Governor. We awoke on a Saturday morning to discover that the A-frame boards of the Governor along Airport Road and some other areas in the metropolis had been destroyed by these agents of darkness, all in the name of politics.

“The preliminary investigation by our men revealed that the opposition parties are behind this destruction, and we strongly feel it is unhealthy for our politics. This act of vandalism is fundamentally undemocratic, and we implore the security agencies to intensify their efforts to ensure swift and effective responses to acts of destruction while upholding peace within the state. We also urged the Imolites not to express worry over the incident because the Governor is only focused on delivering democratic dividends and won’t be distracted by the antics of the agents of destruction,” he said in the statement.

ABUJA– The Supreme Court, on Thursday, affirmed President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress, APC, as the valid winner of the presidential election that held in the country on February 25.

The apex court, in its lead judgement that was prepared and read by Justice Inyang Okoro, held that there was no merit in the petition that a former President and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, filed to nullify the outcome of the election.

It held that Atiku did not prove that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, did not substantially comply with provisions of the Electoral Act, in the conduct of the election.

The apex court held that section 185(1) of the Evidence Act provided that an election should not be liable to be invalidated, when alleged non compliance did not substantially affect the outcome of an election.

It held that evidence contained in the record of the appeal showed that the Appellants abandoned the duty imposed on them by the law to not only prove the alleged non compliance, but to establish that failure of INEC to transmit results of the election through its IReV portal, influenced the outcome of the presidential poll.

The Supreme Court said it had in past judgements, made it clear that there was a difference between election result collation system and the IReV portal.

“Where the IReV portal fails, it does not stop the collation which up till the last election was manually done,” the court held.

Nevertheless, it stressed that INEC’s failure to electronically transmit results of the election, denied the electorates the opportunity to follow and cross-check results that were eventually uploaded.

“Truth must be told, the non transmission of results to the IReV portal may also reduce the confidence of the voting population in the electoral process,” the Supreme Court warned.

It held that the unavailability of results on INEC’s IReV portal “for whatever reason, could not be the reason for an election to be nullified.

Related News

We can’t go back to dark old days, Supreme Court tells Atiku

Presidential tussle: 7 Supreme Court Justices to determine Tinubu, Atiku, Obi’s fate

Supreme Court delivers judgment on Atiku, Obi’s appeals against Tinubu tomorrow

The apex court held that Atiku and PDP did not prove that they suffered any miscarriage of justice as a result of the dismissal of their petition by the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC.

It described as misconceived and misplaced, Atiku’s contention that Tinubu ought not have been declared winner of the presidential election, having failed to secure 25% votes in the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja.

The apex court affirmed the position of the PEPC that the FCT does not have a status that is more special than that of the 36 States of the federation.

It further upheld the striking out the evidence of some of the witnesses that testified for Atiku at the PEPC hearing, adding that most of the witnesses gave “inadmissible hearsay” evidence.

“The Appellants did not present any evidence to warrant the interference of the findings of the lower court,” head of the apex court panel, Justice Okoro, added.

On the issue that President Tinubu was involved in a drug related case in the USA that led to the forfeiture of $460, 000, the Supreme Court held that Tinubu raised the issue when the Respondents had already filed their process.

It held that the action denied the Respondents the right to fair hearing.

“The ruling of the lower court is unassailable and this court will not interfere,” it held.

The court held that whereas Atiku alleged that the result that was declared by INEC was not accurate, he, however, failed to put forward their perceived rightful result.

It held that the result announced by INEC was presumed as correct in the absence of “any rival or alternative result.”

“The figure before us shows that the 2nd Respondent won the highest number of votes and was duly declared winner.”

Consequently, the court, resolved all the issues that Atiku raised in his petition, against him.

“On the whole, having resolved all the issues against the Appellants, it is my view that there is no merit in this appeal and it is hereby dismissed.

“Judgement of the lower court delivered on September 6 is hereby affirmed. I shall make no order as to cost,” the Supreme Court held.

It will be recalled that INEC had on March 1, announced that Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, won the presidential contest, ahead of 17 other candidates that participated in the poll.

It declared that he garnered a total of 8,794,726 votes to defeat his two major rivals, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, who came second with a total of 6,984,520 votes, and Mr. Peter Obi of the Labour Party, who came third with a total of 6,101,533 votes.

In a significant political move, actress Tonto Dikeh has officially switched her allegiance from the opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Dikeh was previously the deputy governorship candidate for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Rivers State in preparation for the 2023 election.

To mark this change, the actress is set to be formally introduced to the APC.

The Nation reports that the unveiling will be conducted by the APC National Women Leader, Dr Mary Alile, at the national secretariat in Abuja today at 3 p.m.

The member, representing Isa-Sabon Birni federal constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdulkadir Jelani Danbuga, is dead. A member, representing Sabon…

The member, representing Isa-Sabon Birni federal constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdulkadir Jelani Danbuga, is dead.

A member, representing Sabon Birni South constituency at the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Aminu Almustapha (aka Boza), confirmed the death to our reporter.

According to Boza, the federal lawmaker died around 12:30 am on Wednesday after a brief illness.

A human rights lawyer, Pius Danba has raised concerns over the delay by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to conduct a bye election for Jalingo/Yorro/Zing Federal Constituency of Taraba State.

He said the exercise was long overdue.

Danba, who made his position known on Tuesday in a letter addressed to the INEC Chairman, stated that the INEC had violated the constitutional provision which provided that election to fill a vacant position must not exceed 30 days.

The Jalingo/Yorro/Zing Federal Constituency seat has remained vacant following the sudden demise of the winner of the February 25 election, Ismaila Yushau Mohammed.

Wondering why INEC has continued to drag its feet, he said, “it will interest you to know that from the 22nd day of April, 2023 to 13th June ,2023 is 52 days.

“It is also well over 170 days now since the death of Ismaila Yushau Mohammed and the seat of the member representing Jalingo/Yorro/Zing Federal Constituency has been vacant since the inauguration of the House of Representatives on the 13th June, 2023.

“The people of Jalingo/Yorro/Zing are not represented at all for over 118 days and counting, which is contrary to Section 76 (1) (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).”

He added that Section 34 (3) (b) of the Electoral Act 2022, provides for just 21 days grace period after the death of a candidate.

The legal luminary faulted the Commission for giving priority to the Bayelsa and Kogi governorship elections.

He said, “it appears that your commission does not consider the election of Jalingo/Yorro/Zing Federal Constituency to be an equally important constitutional activity at all.”

A former House of Representatives member who represented Idah Federal Constituency in Kogi State, Hon. Ismail Inah Hussein, popularly known as Soul Lover, has dumped the Peoples Democratic Party for the All Progressives Congress, along with hundreds of supporters.

Soul Lover was on Friday dressed and decorated with APC’s robes by the Kogi State Party Chairman, Abdullahi Bello, in Ajaka, Igalamela-Odolu Local Government Area, as a sign that he had fully pitched his tent with the ruling party.

Inah, who was a dedicated member of the ruling PDP in Kogi state attributed his decision to join the APC to his desire to contribute to the development of Kogi State and the country as a whole.

He said the APC government, under Governor Yahaya Bello, had instituted unity, security and overall development of the state, hence, his decision to support the APC governorship candidate, Alhaji Usman Ododo for consolidation.

Speaking during his admission into the party, which witnessed by a mammoth crowd, the heavyweight political leader in Kogi East vowed to mobilise massively for his new party and ensure that APC wins overwhelmingly in the November 11 governorship election.

Also decamping was the former Women Leader of the PDP in Igalamela LGA, as well as the women leaders of the wards in the area.

The Commissioner for Transportation in Kogi State, Baron Okwoli, in his address, commended Inah and his followers for their decision to join the APC and assured that they would work together to ensure victory for the party.

Similarly, the Deputy Governorship Candidate, Joel Oyibo, said he was impressed by the high turnout at the ceremony to receive the former lawmaker. He noted that the attendance was evidence that people believed strongly in the APC despite propaganda by opposition parties.

He assured the people of Igalamela-Odolu and the entire state that the governorship candidate, Usman Ododo, when elected, would consolidate on the unity, security and infrastructural development instituted by Governor Yahaya Bello.

The state party chairman welcomed the former lawmaker and his supporters, and expressed the confidence that the APC would win, landslide, in the forthcoming election.

He assured of victory for APC in Igalamela-Odolu and urged the new members to remain steadfast and committed to party functions with a promise of equal opportunities alongside existing party members.

Dignitaries present at the event included former State Chairman of APC, Hadi Ametuo; Deputy Governorship Candidate, Joel Oyibo; Zonal Chairman of APC, Muhammed Alfa; member representing Idah Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives, David Zacharias; former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Sadiq Abubakar Ainoko, among others.