18032019 - APC, PDP attack INEC over Bauchi, Adamawa gov polls

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40 — Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 18, 2019
Vanguard, MONDAY, MARCH 18, 2019—41 APC, PDP attack INEC over Bauchi, Adamawa gov polls Continues from Page 5 While the close relationship between Festus Okoye who chaired the fact-finding committee and Yakubu Dogara of the PDP is well known, hence inappropriate for the factfinding exercise for Bauchi state, INEC has failed to adhere to the fundamental principle of fair-hearing by not inviting our agents during the hearing to ascertain the circumstances leading to the cancellation of the Tafawa Balewa local government election result. INEC’s decision is illegal as the electoral body and contravenes the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010 as amended We reiterate that according to Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution (as amended) and INEC Guidelines for 2019 General Elections, the electoral body is not empowered to reverse any decision taken at the Collation Centre by the Returning Officer appointed for that purpose. Such decisions can only be reversed by a court of law, especially when INEC cannot approbate and reprobate. Also, a national officer of the APC, Yekini Nabena, and the Bauchi State APC Chairman, Mr. Uba Nana, spoke in like manner. At a press conference in Bauchi, Mr. Uba said: “The fact-finding committee chaired by Dr. Festus Okoye, the national commissioner and chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, denied fair hearing to APC as a political party whose agents were not invited during hearing of the facts leading to the cancellation of the results of Tafawa Balewa LGA. Any decision taken in violation of fair hearing is illegal, null and void.” Nana claimed that no justice can be done by the committee chairman, who is interested in the whole issues and the instant circumstances. He said this was proved by the fact that PDP and Mr Dogara, on Facebook, preempted the outcome of the committee’s finding before formal publication by INEC. The APC chairman said that the decision of INEC based on the committee’s report was already prayed for at the Federal High Court, Bauchi in Suit No. FHC/BAU/CS/18/2019 filed by Bala Mohammed and PDP against INEC. “Unfortunately, the extant decision of INEC reversing the cancellation of Tafawa Balewa Results was earlier sought for but refused by the court in the said suit at interim stage. Now INEC has granted what was refused by the court of law in the interest of injustice,” he said. I’ve never met Dogara – Okoye When contacted, INEC National Commissioner, Barr. Festus Okoye, denied any relationship with Speaker Yakubu Dogara, saying they had never had any dealing before. He said: “That is very laughable. I have never met the Speaker in my life,” adding that INEC has no interest in who emerges the governor of any state as its preoccupation is to deliver on its constitutional mandate. “INEC has no interest in the outcome of the Bauchi Governorship Election. The interest of the Commission revolves around making sure that the procedures and processes leading to the declaration and return of the winners of election conforms to constitutional dictates, the law and the regulations and guidelines of the commission. “The Reports of Investigation Committees and Fact-Finding Committees of the Commission are reports and can only become the findings and decisions of the Commission when considered and adopted by the commission. “The Investigation Committee that considered the issues surrounding the collation of results for Tafawa Balewa Local Government interviewed the Registration Area Collation Officers, the Electoral Officer for Tafawa Balewa Local Government and located the critical documents relating to the election. APC, PDP, PRP and NNPP attended and canvassed their positions at the stakeholders meeting which was also attended by the Commissioner of Police and the State Director of DSS. “The Investigation Committee was only charged with the responsibility of making determination on whether original and or duplicate result sheets at the Polling Units and the Registration Areas exist with which to regenerate the ones carted away and or destroyed by armed gangs during the collation process in Tafawa Balewa Local Government. APC, PDP, PRP and NNPP agents signed the results at the Polling Units and the Registration Areas. “Moreover, the result from 7 Registration Areas out of 11 relating to Governorship election had been collated before the armed gangs disrupted the process. So, the issues were straightforward. The Commission will complete the collation process on Tuesday using original and or duplicate result sheets for Local Government Collation and that is the decision of the Commission. “I find it out of place to respond to personal attacks and insinuations that are not backed with cogent and verifiable facts and evidence. I am 34 years post-call and the speaker of the House of Representatives is my junior. “Other than seeing him on television, I have only seen him physically from a distance and only once in a workshop. I was never an ex-solicitor or a present solicitor to the speaker. Those making the allegation cannot produce one piece of paper I signed as a solicitor or one payment I received as a solicitor. “It will serve the country better if people remain on issues and refrain from making wild allegations that have no substance whatsoever.” Why we didn’t allow Atiku inspect election materials Meanwhile, the INEC has clarified its decision not to allow the PDP presidential candidate inspect election materials. Atiku headed to the court after losing the February 23 election to President Muhammadu Buhari of the APC and filed an application to compel INEC to grant him access to materials used for the election and the court granted his prayer. However, the PDP said INEC has refused to obey the ruling of the appeal court for Atiku to inspect documents and materials used for the election. “There is a deliberate and wicked ploy by INEC, acting in cahoots with the APC to frustrate the peoplebacked resolve by Atiku Abubakar and the PDP to timeously file and mention our petition at the Presidential election Tribunal, and by so doing, ambush the case,” Kola Ologbondiyan, spokesman of the party, said in a statement. “It is imperative to inform Nigerians that upon obtaining the lawful order of the Court, directing INEC to forthwith, avail Atiku Abubakar and the PDP copies of all the documents and other materials used for the Presidential election, our legal team wrote to the INEC Chairman on the 11th and 12th of March 2019 respectively, causing the Order to be served on INEC and requesting access to the said documents and materials. “Despite being served with the Order and several follow-ups, the leadership of INEC has refused to grant the PDP and Atiku Abubakar access to the materials and documents, notwithstanding the urgency of the matter. “This action by the leadership of INEC has further exposed that it has been heavily compromised by the Buhari Presidency to rig the February 23, 2019 Presidential election and to frustrate the quest by Nigerians to reclaim the mandate from President Muhammadu Buhari and CATHOLIC BISHOPS—Procession of Catholic Bishops, during the First Plenary Meeting of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) at the Resource Centre, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN), Abuja, yesterday. save the nation from the crisis of an illegitimate government.” The party accused the leadership of INEC and APC of seeking to frustrate the court option, seeing that “the documents and materials will expressly show that Atiku Abubakar clearly won the election by the votes directly delivered at the polling units across the country as well as expose how the commission and the Buhari Presidency manipulated the results for President Buhari.” We haven't received court order – INEC Asked to react, Rotimi Oyekanmi, spokesman of INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, told TheCable that INEC will comply with the court directive “if and when the commission receives the order.” His words: “It is common knowledge that since the declaration of the results of the presidential election, the commission has been busy with the multiple activities associated with the national assembly, governorship, state houses of assembly and federal capital territory elections. “Only last Thursday, the commission presented certificates of return to senators-elect and House of Representatives Memberselects including PDP members. Nevertheless, the commission will comply when the due process is followed.” It’s wrong for INEC to disobey court order on Adamawa re-run– Ardo Dr Umar Ardo, in a statement, Sunday, in Abuja, Dr Ardo said: “I just read a news item that a Yola High Court has issued an order on INEC not to proceed with its March 23 scheduled rerun election in Adamawa State but the commission is ignoring the order, stating that the court lacked jurisdiction over the federal establishment and would therefore go ahead with the rerun election. “In my opinion, if it is actually true a court indeed issued an order and INEC refused to comply then INEC is clearly at fault. It is not only wrong but is a clear path to anarchy. Because if a court of competent jurisdiction gives an order, and it is duly served, then we are all duty bound to obey, no matter how fallible that order may be. This is an irreducible element of due process of rule of law on all citizens, bodies and authorities in society. To come up with any selfinterpretation of law as excuse of disobedience is simply self-serving, to say the least. The court obviously knows the provisions of the law and the extent of its jurisdictions when it gave the order. Under the Nigerian constitution, it is not for INEC nor for anyone else’s for that matter, but for the court’s, to interpret the law”, he said. According to him, since the electoral umpire would not respect the court order, the Adamawa electorate would do well to also boycott the exercise. “Consequently, if indeed a court has issued an order to INEC and it is duly served, I strongly advise that INEC complies with the order if it does not want to throw our society into anarchy. INEC not complying will only further complicate issues and project the commission as pursuing a predetermined agenda. If INEC has an issue with such an order it should appeal against it within the due process of law, but to ignore it blatantly just because it doesn’t agree with it is the highest act of impunity. If we all ignore and act against court orders that we don’t agree with, then we’ll have no society to cohabit in. I am sure neither the court nor the society would congratulate INEC for disobeying court order. That is my candid opinion and advise to the commission. “But if INEC insist on disobeying this order then I advise all concerned political parties and the Adamawa electorate, as law abiding bodies and citizens, to boycott the exercise, not to indulge in INEC’s act of impunity and allow the commission to trample the order all by itself”, he stated. Dr Ardo, who who was for several times a governorship aspirant on the platform of the PDP, was first appointed in 1999 to the office of the Vice President as Special Assistant (States and Local Government Affairs). He was reappointed as Special Assistant (Research and Strategy) to the President and Commander-in-Chief in 2003. Supplementary polls: Buhari won’t influence, change results—— Presidency Meanwhile, the Presidency, last night, cautioned against what it described as “a lot of the hate spewing, incitement to violence and the polarizing statements by so-called political leaders.” The Presidency also said it rejected unfair and ridiculous criticisms of President Muhammadu Buhari’s apparent disinterest in the upcoming elections in some states by party members who wrongfully assume that the President will abuse power by changing results to favour them. A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu in Abuja, stated that past Presidents of Nigeria were known to interfere in inconclusive elections, and that it was the reason why party members appear to be upset that the same thing was not happening again in the present situation in the country. According to the presidential aide, “President Buhari is a different kind of leader. He swore to defend the constitution and will not veer off from that.” He further said, “The constitution of Nigeria gives the President no such powers. It is unfair and ridiculous to criticise President Buhari for not going against the constitution. “Party members in states where there will be supplementary elections then need to be reminded that they need to work hard to earn their people’s votes, rather than expect President Buhari to manipulate INEC in their favour. “Interestingly, while members of the ruling APC party were criticising the President for not interfering on their behalf, members of the opposition were condemning the President based on their assumptions that he would definitely interfere, as many in the opposition did while in power.”
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18032019 - APC, PDP attack INEC over Bauchi, Adamawa gov polls

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