Politics
C’River: INEC Issues Fresh Certificate Of Return To Jarigbe
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a fresh Certificate of Return to Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe as the winner and duly elected candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to represent Cross River North Senatorial District.
The decision followed the judgment of the Court of Appeal which declared Jarigbe as the candidate of the party which won the election.
The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja had, last Thursday, affirmed the judgment of an FCT High Court which had earlier declared Jarigbe as duly elected PDP candidate for the December 5 Cross River North Senatorial seat.
The Certificate of Return was handed over to him on Monday by the National Commissioner of Voter Education, Mr. Festus Okoye.
The withdrawal of the Certificate of Return earlier issued to Senator Odey was in compliance to the Appeal Court judgment last Thursday.
By the issuance of the fresh Certificate of Return to Jarigbe, the one earlier issued to Dr Odey is deemed cancelled and withdrawn.
Meanwhile Hon Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe, has promised his constituents a senatorial district of their dreams devoid of personal or family dynasties.
Jarigbe stated this in a terse statement made available to reporters in Calabar shortly after INEC had issued a Certificate of Return to him in Abuja on Monday, following an Abuja Appeal Court’s judgement declaring him as the duly nominated candidate of the PDP and the rightful winner of the election and ordered the withdrawal of the one earlier issued to Dr Stephen Odey.
In its unanimous judgment on December 17, the Court of Appeal upheld the judgment of the trial court that the primaries which produced Jarigbe were conducted with the correct and authentic list of delegates and that Hon Jarigbe, having scored the highest number of valid votes in the primary election, is the validly nominated candidate of the PDP.
The judgement comes six days after Dr Stephen Odey was sworn in by the Clerk of the Senate, Ibrahim El-Ladan, and barely two weeks after the same Commission issued a Certificate of Return to him.
Senator-Elect Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe is expected to be sworn-in in January 2021
According to Jarigbe, ‘unlike those who were coerced by their boss to run for the Cross River North bye-election, I came for the good people of Cross River North.
‘I’m motivated that they believe in me and find me worthy to reclaim the lost glory of our region. Like I have always said, Cross River North and her people remain my topmost priority.
‘Together we shall build the Cross River North of our dreams and not personal or family dynasties. We shall build reliable institutions for the benefit and prosperity of all.’
Hailing the Appeal Court judgement and subsequent issuance of Certificate of Return to Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe as Senator-elect by INEC, some Cross River state PDP stakeholders have described it as a judgement of ‘equity and justice to the people of Ogoja.’
Commending the ruling, the Coordinator of Movement for the Restoration of Cross River PDP, (MFTROCR), Raymond Takom, said the turn around of events and eventual issuance of CoR to Hon Jarigbe Agom by INEC is a demonstration of the popular support he enjoys among his people and a reflection of the fight for equity and fairness the Ogoja people have been yearning for.
Takon said: ‘The Appeal Court ruling has restored total confidence in the Judiciary and their commitment to upholdin’ democratic tenets which is the voice of the people. We all want a man who has the people mandate and not a crony.
“We equally commend INEC for acting swiftly by honouring the Appeal ruling. It shows democracy is at work and we shall stop at nothing to protect the mandate to any level.’
In an emotion-laden tone, a member of the State PDP Caretaker Committee, who doesn’t want his name in print, expressed happiness that he is alive to see an Ogoja son become a senator after decades of denial by their brothers in the northern senatorial district.
He said: ‘We are very grateful to Appeal Court and INEC as well as all good people of the north who have fought this battle to this level. It is the Lord’s doing and we plead with all to join hands and end the fight.
‘We are all form one stock in old Ogoja and now is the time to queue behind Ogoja man to at least test the Senate seat as every local government in the north has their turn. So, we are waiting for the inauguration.’
According to him, now is the auspicious time for all to close ranks and move PDP forward rather dissipating energy in several court cases that would weaken the party in the long run.
Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has directed his legal team to resume all court proceedings against Mrs. Tracy Ohiri over her repeated allegations of indebtedness and other claims against him.
Mrs Ohiri had publicly accused Senator Umahi of owing her N280 million for campaign materials from his tenure as party chairman in Ebonyi State.
The allegations went viral on social media, where she also accused the Minister of sexual harassment.
Security agencies arrested Mrs Ohiri, and she was subsequently prosecuted. Her lawyer, Barrister Marshall Abubakar, intervened, leading to the deletion of all posts and a public apology, which also gained widespread attention online.
However, days after the apology, Mrs Ohiri resumed her claims against Senator Umahi.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Francis Nwaze, Senator Umahi said he had informed Barrister Abubakar during the intervention that if Mrs Ohiri could provide verifiable evidence, logs, and communications from the period in question, some of his associates were willing to contribute a sum of One Billion Naira (N1billion) to her, evidence which, he said, she had yet to provide.
“The Honourable Minister of Works, Senator Engr. David Umahi, has been monitoring the ongoing public discourse surrounding the claims and counterclaims by Mrs. Tracy Ohiri.
“Ordinarily, this would have been ignored, but in the interest of truth and public clarity, it is necessary to address the issues directly”, the statement read.
The statement clarified that Barrister Abubakar acted in good faith and without any financial interest, motivated solely by a desire to assist Mrs Ohiri.
At no point did the lawyer discuss or negotiate any payment with the minister, although some well-meaning associates independently offered support”, the statement added.
Senator Umahi reiterated the conditions for resolving the matter: either the claims must be tested in court, or Mrs Ohiri must provide credible evidence, including all relevant communications, to substantiate her allegations.
The minister emphasised that Barr Abubakar conducted himself with integrity throughout the process.
“Following the failure to meet these conditions, particularly the inability to provide verifiable evidence, the Minister has directed his legal team to proceed with all court processes to ensure the truth is fully established,” the statement said.
Senator Umahi said despite years of public provocations and attacks, he chose to remain silent, focusing on national and state services.
He thanked Nigerians who had taken time to assess the facts and noted that “not everyone who presents themselves as a victim truly is one, and in some cases, narratives are deliberately inverted.”
The Minister affirmed that he will not be distracted by Mrs Ohiri’s allegations and remained committed to his mandate at the Ministry of Works.
“The focus remains on results, service, and ensuring that Nigerians continue to benefit from projects that improve connectivity, economic growth, and national development. This administration will continue to pursue its transformation agenda with dedication, transparency, and an unwavering sense of responsibility,” he concluded.
A Rivers State High Court sitting in Port Harcourt has adjourned proceedings in a suit filed by three aggrieved members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to April 14, 2026, for the hearing of all pending motions.
Justice Stephen Jumbo made the pronouncement during a recent sitting in Port Harcourt.
The suit, which borders on the legitimacy of the party’s leadership structure in the state, was instituted against the factional State Chairman of the PDP, Chief Aaron Chukwuemeka, alongside the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) and other respondents.
Also joined in the matter are the PDP as a corporate entity, the Rivers State Government, as well as Obio/Akpor, Port Harcourt City and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Areas, including their respective Vice Chairmen and Councillors.
The claimants, Enyi Uchechukwu, Wisdom Kalio and Uche Amadi, approached the court via an originating summons seeking judicial interpretation on the validity of actions taken by the Chief Chukwuemeka-led state executive committee of the party.
Central to the dispute is whether the said executive committee, whose emergence the claimants contend has been nullified by a subsisting court judgment, retains the legal authority to act on behalf of the party in critical electoral matters.
The plaintiffs specifically urged the court to determine whether the factional leadership could validly submit a list of candidates to RSIEC for the purpose of participating in local government elections.
They further questioned the legitimacy of the PDP’s participation in the August 30, 2025 local government elections, contending that any list purportedly submitted by the factional leadership was invalid and of no legal consequence.
In addition to the declaratory reliefs sought, the claimants also prayed the court to grant consequential orders addressing the outcome and conduct of the said elections across the affected local government areas.
At the resumed hearing, counsel representing the PDP and the affected local government councils informed the court that they had only recently been served with the originating processes and accompanying documents.
The defence team, comprising several Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs), disclosed that service of the court processes was effected on March 13, 2026, leaving them with limited time to adequately prepare their responses.
Consequently, the defence counsel applied for an adjournment to enable them study the processes and address the legal issues raised, particularly as they relate to jurisdictional questions and points of law.
Counsel to the claimants, Glory Chizim-Chinda, did not oppose the application, following which the presiding judge granted the request and adjourned the matter to April 14, 2026, for the hearing of all pending motions, with a possible ruling expected ahead of the substantive suit.
By: King Onunwor
A former state lawmaker in the old the Rivers State, Professor Alex Eseimokumo, has described Nigerian opposition political parties as mere preposition political parties.
He also advised the country’s electorate against selling their votes during next year’s general elections.
The former legislator, who is also the president of the Institute for Peace, Conflict Resolution and Entrepreneurial Research, said this in an exclusive interview with The Tide on the sidelines of an event organized by the institute in Port Harcourt.
He said opposition political parties in Nigeria have been reduced to preposition political parties as most of them are not only dinning with the government but advising government on what to do to win election.
“The problem in Nigeria is we are not practicing politics the way it is supposed to be.The opposition are more in preposition.
“You see, opposition is supposed to find out things that are wrong in government but in our present day politics, you see opposition even dinning with the other group. So, there is basically nothing like opposition in Nigeria “, he said.
He lamented a situation where some individuals within the opposition are allegedly working hard to prevent their parties from fielding presidential candidates in the forthcoming election, adding that such individuals were only there to protect their personal interest.
Prof. Eseimokumo said as a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), he could not wish his party to fail in the election, even though nothing is impossible in Nigeria.
He noted that though the government in power has been trying it’s best, there was more to be done.
In his words, “I’m an APC member, so I don’t have the right to criticize my party but a word of advice: we still need to do more, more people oriented leadership where everybody will feel carried along.
“For now, I’m campaigning for APC to be re elected and if I stand here to say APC is not doing well, I’m not being fair to myself. But I think, with God all things are possible, there can be changes”.
On his assessment of the performances of governors of the Niger Delta states, Prof Eseimokumo said the governors were doing well within the limit of their resources.
” I don’t know what is given to them as allocation, but if what we are seeing in terms of window dressing is not window shopping, then they are doing well”, he said.
Meanwhile, Prof. Eseimokumo has advised Nigerian electorates against selling their votes during the forthcoming elections.
He said credible election could only be achieved when the electorates refuse financial inducement during the elections.
According to him, though Nigerian voters had been difficult to persuade, the time had come for them to stop selling their votes.
Prof. Eseimokumo said the forthcoming elections will serve as a litmus test for the Nigerian electorate to demonstrate their desire for changes in the country, stressing that free and fair elections will continue to be a mirage in the country until the was a change in the attitude of the electorate.
“If you want your vote to count, don’t take money from anybody; if you want your votes to count, don’t collect money for your vote. The moment you collect money for your vote, you have sold your conscience”, he warned.
He said his institute will continue to work for peace, not just in the Niger Delta region but across Nigeria.
By: John Bibor
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