Politics
INEC And Imo Governorship Case
Nduka Madu
It is now approximately thirty months since the good people of lmo State gave Chief Martin Agbaso, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) an overwhelming mandate to govern them for four years. Thirty months after, the question on the lips of the preponderant majority of lmo men and women today is how much longer will they have to wait for justice to be done to them?
When the Court of Appeal sitting at Abuja decided, on the 26th of February, 2007, that it has jurisdiction to hear Chief Agbaso’s appeal, the people of lmo State heaved a big sigh of relief in the belief that at last the matter was coming to a head. This was especially so as the court was undeterred by the spirited attempts made by the legal representation of both INEC and Chief Ohakim to use technicalities to once again scuttle Chief Agbaso’s bid to be heard. The court held with remarkable resoluteness, that the twin issue of whether INEC had power under the law to cancel the April 14 Elections in the circumstances and in the manner in which it did, had not been pronounced upon or even addressed by any court. Both INEC and Chief Ohakim’s legal teams speedily headed for the Supreme Court to continue their challenge of the Court of Appeal’s jurisdiction to hear Chief Agbaso’s appeal.
Chief Agbaso’s lead counsel, arguing that the Agbaso case was time bound, tried desperately but without success, to persuade the Court of Appeal to allow the parties to adopt their briefs which had all been filed by then, so that whenever the Supreme Court ruled on the Appeal Court’s jurisdiction, a date for judgment on the substantive suit would be fixed and so expedite the process. The court’s position was that it was established law that once a matter had gone before the Supreme Court, proceedings on the matter in all subsidiary courts must cease pending the Supreme Court’s decision or direction on it.
In the spirit of the urgency demanded by the Agbaso suit, the Supreme Court quickly fixed the hearing of the case in the hope that an accelerated hearing would be given to the matter. But on the day of hearing, the INEC and Chief Ohakim’s camps came with new motions which they deliberately neglected to file so that they could get time elongation to file them which they indeed got. Chief Agbaso’s lead counsel wasted no time in alerting the court that the game plan of the opposition was to delay and prolong proceedings for as long as possible so as to prolong the illegal stay of Chief Ohakim in office. The presiding justice promptly gave the assurance that the court would take adequate steps to ensure that proceedings were not unnecessarily delayed. It was therefore surprising to the Agbaso camp when the court fixed a four and half month adjournment. When Chief Agbaso’s lead counsel protested, the presiding judge promptly assured him that the September 29 date which the court had fixed for the next hearing of the case was in fact the earliest possible date the matter could be heard.
This was because the court would be proceeding on its annual recess in July. Besides, it had at least four pending judgements to write and deliver before the court went on vacation.
Four and half months have now sped past and September 29, 2009 is now around the corner. The question now is: will the Ohakim and lNEC camps be prepared to proceed or will they conjure up new devices for obtaining more elongation of the proceedings? The fact of the matter is that they know that they cannot successfully challenge the facts of Chief Agbaso’s case. As a member of their legal team confided, there is no doubt that lNEC had no legal grounds on which to base its decision to annul the April 14 Imo State Governorship elections. So, their game plan from the beginning has been and still continues to be, to use all the legal technicalities they can muster to delay the hearing of the substantial case. Their hope is that they will succeed in stalling the conclusion of the case well beyond the three years Chief Ngige remained illegally in office in Anambra State to enable Chief Ohakim serve, if not the full four years, at least long beyond the three years Ngige served. The question is, will they succeed?
It will be a travesty of justice of unimaginable proportions were that to happen. To begin with, the Court of Appeal had ruled on February 26, 2009 that the April 28 election, on the basis of which Chief Ohakim assumed and remains in office, ought not to have been held ab initio. What this means is that the election that ostensibly brought him to power is invalid. That being so, his tenure is invalid and so he should be made to vacate the office of Governor of Imo State without further delay. The issue has even been compounded and made much worse for Chief Ohakim by his defection from the Progressive Peoples Alliance, PPA, on the platform of which he contested the invalid April 28th election. So, not only quote the April 28 election by which he rules declared invalid, he has also lost the platform on which he could stand to argue his case to be allowed to remain in office. Indeed, a case can now be made for striking out Chief Ohakim’s appeal on the ground that he has lost his locus on the basis of which he was entitled to enter the appeal. However, any such move will only serve to prolong the current proceedings and play into the hands of those who wish the proceedings could continue till 2011.
Now that the long awaited September 29,2009 had arrived, nothing should – be done which should have the effect of further prolonging the determination of the key question which Chief Agbaso has been asking to be answered these past thirty months; which is, “Did lNEC have power under the law to cancel the Imo State Governorship elections validly held on April 14, 2007, the results of which had been fully collated in all the twenty-seven LGAs of the state and duly announced in at least twenty-four of the twenty-seven L.G.A. Collation Centres of the state”. If the answer to that question is no, then the results already collated should be assembled and a winner for that election declared.
Madu wrote in from Owerri
Senate has again approved a three-month extension implementation period for capital component of the 2025 Appropriation Act from June 30 to Sept 30.
This followed the adoption of a motion moved by Senate Chief Whip, Mohammed Monguno (APC- Borno) at plenary yesterday.
Monguno, moving the motion, said the extension became necessary given the unutilsed substantial funds released to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for implementation of projects under the 2025 budget.
According to him, delays caused by procurement processes, project implementation challenges and administrative procedures had slowed the execution of several critical government projects.
Monguno said many strategic projects across key sectors of the economy were already at advanced stages of completion and required additional time for execution, certification and payment.
“Failure to extend the implementation period of the 2025 Appropriation Act may result in the abandonment of critical projects, the wastage of already committed public resources and the disruption of ongoing government interventions,” he said.
He argued that some allocations contained in the budget might not be accommodated in subsequent appropriation cycles if the implementation window expired.
This, he said would create funding gaps and ultimately undermine development objectives.
He said that extending the validity period of the budget would improve budget performance, facilitate the efficient utilisation of released funds and support economic growth.
“Granting a further extension of the implementation period is in the national interest and will ensure value for money in public expenditure,” he said.
Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriations, Sen. Solomon Adeola (APC-Ogun), supporting the motion, explained that the extension was specifically targeted at the capital component of the budget.
According to him, when President Bola Tinubu presented the 2025 budget to the National Assembly, there is an understanding that 30 per cent of the budget implementation will be completed by March 31, while the remaining 70 per cent will be rolled into the 2026 budget.
Adeola said that the implementation timeline was not fully achieved, prompting the National Assembly to earlier extend the budget’s lifespan to June 30.
“While we were passing the 2026 budget, due to the non-implementation of that promise, we were forced to extend the budget to June 30,” he said.
He said although payments had commenced, significant obligations remained outstanding.
“There is a need to extend this budget beyond June 30 to September 30, by then, we are hopeful that the outstanding 30 per cent will have been paid in full, while implementation of the components transferred to the 2026 budget can commence.”
Adeola urged senators to support the extension to ensure proper implementation of projects and prevent disruptions to government programmes.
Sen.Victor Umeh (NDC-Anambra), who seconded the motion cited the need to sustain the execution of projects captured under the 2025 Appropriation Act.
“In view of the need to sustain the continued execution of the projects covered in the 2025 Appropriation Act, as amended, I hereby second the motion,” Umeh said.
Following deliberations, Senate President Akpabio put the proposal to a voice vote and it was overwhelmingly adopted by the lawmakers..
Akpabio in his remarks said the decision was necessary to prevent interruptions in payments and project execution.
“The payment would have stopped halfway if this was not done,” he said.
The Senate President commended the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee and other lawmakers involved in handling the matter.
He directed that the Senate’s resolution be transmitted to the executive for implementation.
“Accordingly, the resolution of the Senate is being communicated to the Executive that the 2025 Appropriation Act has been extended to Sept 30.
The National Assembly had earlier extended the implementation period of the 2025 budget to June 30, following delays in the release and utilisation of capital funds.
Senate, thereafter, adjourned plenary to July 7.
The member representing Sagbama/Ekeremor Federal Constituency of Bayelsa State, Frederick Agbedi, yesterday emerged as the new Minority Leader of the House of Representatives.
Agbedi’s emergence follows the resignation of former Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda of Rivers State, who recently defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the ruling All Progressives Congress, creating a vacuum in the leadership structure of the opposition caucus in the Green Chamber.
His nomination was contained in a letter transmitted to the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, by the minority caucus during plenary, yesterday.
In the letter, the caucus announced that its members had reached a consensus on the replacement of vacant principal offices allocated to opposition parties in the House.
Abbas, while reading the letter said, “The election of the House of Representatives, Federal Republic of Nigeria, the minority members of the 10th Assembly hereby unanimously nominate the following members by consensus to fill the vacant positions of the minority in the parliament.
“Number one is the Minority Leader, Hon Frederick Agbedi.
“Number two is the position of minority whip, and the person they have endorsed is Hon Mansur Soro (APM, Bauchi).
“The last but not the least is my brother from the North-West, Hon Abdussamad Dasuki (ADC, Sokoko) for the position of Deputy Minority Leader.
“Honourable colleagues, today the body of principal officers is complete, and I want to seize this opportunity on behalf of the whole entire House to congratulate the three people and to wish them all the best in their new positions.”
With the development, Agbedi assumes the responsibility of coordinating opposition lawmakers in the House and articulating the position of minority parties on legislative matters before the chamber.
A ranking lawmaker and one of the longest-serving members of the House, Agbedi has represented Sagbama/Ekeremor Federal Constituency since 2011.
His appointment is expected to strengthen the voice of the opposition caucus at a time when defections and realignments continue to reshape the political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Also announced was the emergence of Hon Mansur Soro of the Allied Peoples Movement as Minority Whip and Hon Abdussamad Dasuki of the African Democratic Congress as Deputy Minority Leader, completing the minority leadership structure in the 10th House.
Speaking after the announcement, Abbas congratulated the newly appointed principal officers and pledged the cooperation of the House leadership.
“The leadership of the House will work with them assiduously in ensuring that we achieve our legislative agenda objectives of this very important 10th Assembly,” he added.
The emergence of the new minority leadership comes amid recent changes to the House Rules governing the selection of principal officers. The amendments, which introduced fresh eligibility requirements, have generated debate within opposition ranks and influenced the contest for key leadership positions.
Shortly after the announcement, a lawmaker from Imo State who had been nominated for the position of Minority Leader last week, Ikenga Ugochinyere, formally withdrew from the race.
He cited the amended House Rules and the new eligibility criteria for principal officers as the basis for his decision.
The latest appointments are expected to restore stability within the opposition bloc following weeks of uncertainty triggered by Chinda’s defection and the subsequent scramble for leadership positions.
Political observers believe the new leadership team will face the immediate challenge of forging unity among lawmakers drawn from different opposition parties while providing effective legislative scrutiny of the executive and the ruling APC-dominated parliament.
For the PDP, which remains the largest opposition party in the House despite recent defections, Agbedi’s emergence is seen as a strategic move aimed at maintaining cohesion within the minority caucus and strengthening its influence in parliamentary proceedings.
In a letter titled, “An Open Letter to Former President Goodluck Jonathan,” the observer said Dr Jonathan should be careful not to allow himself to be drawn into partisan calculations driven by ambition rather than national interest.
He cautioned the former president against allowing himself to be used by what he described as desperate political interests.
“I believe this is the time to protect the good name and legacy you have built over the years. You should not allow yourself to be used by desperate political elements who may be more interested in their own ambitions than in the future of Nigeria,” the letter read.
The Social Commentator further warned Dr Jonathan to be wary of those advocating for his comeback, claiming many of them were previously opposed to his administration.
“Many of those calling for your return today were your antagonists, those who frustrated your government back then. You should be careful not to become a pawn in a game designed by others or else they will stain your white with their ‘roforofo’,” he said.
He maintained that Dr Jonathan’s legacy remains defined by his decision to concede defeat in 2015, which he described as a landmark moment in Nigeria’s democratic history.
“Your legacy was built through years of public service and your decision to put the country’s peace above personal ambition at a critical moment in Nigeria’s history. That legacy should not be put at risk because of the desperation of a few politicians,” he added.
Mr Adenuga also alleged that some of the promoters of Dr Jonathan’s return have lost credibility in the public space.
“The truth is that some of the people pushing you to contest have already damaged their own reputations. They should not be allowed to stain your legacy with their soiled hands. What they could not achieve on their own should not be pursued through your name and goodwill,” he stressed.
He concluded by urging the former president to remain above political manoeuvring and protect his place in history.
“History has been kind to you. Preserve that honour and remain above the political games of those who want to use your name for their own purposes,” he wrote.
Recall that former President Goodluck Jonathan recently emerged as the presidential candidate of the Kabiru Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) following a special convention held in Abuja, where delegates ratified his nomination ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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