The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Campaign Council has alleged that the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Kogi State Government were planning to move the November 16 polls by two weeks.
The party reported the allegation in a statement signed by its Deputy Director, Public Communication, Comrade Austin Okai, yesterday, claiming the alleged move by APC was hinged on strong public opinion polls and the general feelings, that the incumbent Governor, Yahaya Bello would be beaten to the third position in the weekend election, if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) goes ahead to hold the election as originally scheduled.
In the statement, Okai appealed to INEC not to concede to any unholy moves by the APC that would jeopardise the expectations of the people of the state, against installing good governance by voting the PDP in the Saturday’s election.
He said the teeming supporters and voters across the state have travelled from far and near, to enable them to elect the candidate of their choice as the next governor of Kogi State, and cannot afford to be disenfranchised.
The PDP enjoined INEC to go ahead with the election billed for Saturday, to usher in a new brand administration into Kogi State.
However, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, while speaking on Nigeria Info 95.1FM Abuja, assured that Bayelsa and Kogi elections would not be deceitfully manoeuvred in any way.
Oyekanmi, in confidence of INEC’s competence, stated that anyone planning to disrupt Saturday’s governorship elections in Bayelsa and Kogi states would need to use an atomic bomb, if he is to succeed.
However, an on-going stakeholders’ meeting in Lokoja, Kogi State capital, has been disrupted by suspected political thugs.
The meeting — the second in the series — had in attendance the Inspector General of Police Mohammed Adamu, and National Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.
Trouble started when the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) was prevented from entering the event hall of Idrinana Hotel venue of the meeting, which resulted in altercation between SDP governorship candidate, Natasha Akpoti and security personnel at the entrance.
The security personnel tried to prevail on her to go back — a plea which she rejected, saying she was duly invited for the meeting.
It was at this point that the police released tear gas to disperse the surging crowed, while all those at the high table, including the Inspector General of Police and INEC chairman, ran for cover.
The Chairman of SDP, Mouktar Atimah, was manhandled and beaten up while trying to mediate.
Speaking shortly after the incident, Atimah said what happened showed “the extent to which our society had got rotten.”
He appeared too weak to talk extensively when our correspondent sought to speak with him.
Speaking, the Inspector-General of the Nigeria Police, Muhammed Adamu, said security operatives on election duty in Kogi State would not hesitate to gun down any unauthorised person attempting to use firearm in any part of the state during the electioneering process.
The IGP sounded the warning in Lokoja, yesterday during a stakeholders’ meeting/signing of peace accord among political parties and candidates, organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The police chief, who spoke after the Chairman of the INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, had delivered his address, also warned police men on guard duties with politicians not to allow to be used by politicians to perpetrate illegality on election day, warning that anyone caught roaming the street without proper authorisation would be arrested.
Adamu, who said the police was working with other security agencies, also warned that the police would be on the lookout for those who would be out on the Election Day to either buy or sell votes, warning that vote buying is a criminal offense.
He, however, assured that the police would be professional, ready to provide a level playing ground for all parties and participants, adding that the police and other security operatives on election duty would protect all INEC and other election officials, as well as materials for the exercise, against attacks.
“Security agents are ready for this election. We pledge to be professional; we pledge to provide a level playing field to all participating parties. Every polling unit, INEC officials and materials, NYSC members and all that will be playing one role or the other shall be secured.
“While doing that, we will not tolerate people coming to buy or sell votes. Anyone caught will be arrested, kept out of circulation and be prosecuted. The collation centres will be protected so there will be no disruption.
“If you are armed, please report it to the police and surrender the arm now before it’s too late. If you are intending to use arms, be warned, if you are lucky, you will be arrested when you are sighted attempting to use it. If you are unlucky, you will be taken out before you succeed in using it,” the IGP warned.
Similarly, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of hoarding vital information on the November 16 Kogi Governorship election and conniving with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to rig the poll.
The party gave INEC 24-hour ultimatum to come out clean by explaining the modalities for Saturday’s poll as it would not fold its arm and allow the election to be rigged in favour of the ruling party.
This is contained in a statement signed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, and made available to journalists in Lokoja, yesterday.
The party called on the electoral umpire to end its “apparent tilt towards underhandedness in the processes leading to the election”.
Ologbondiyan said “INEC’s failure to openly inform stakeholders on the election modalities, particularly the use of card readers, mode of accreditation, voting, as well as collation, transmission and declaration of election results from the polling units to the final declaration, raises questions on the sincerity of the commission to deliver a credible election.”
The PDP alerted that such suppression of vital information ahead of this crucial election heightened public suspicion and allegations of conspiracies between INEC and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to muddle up and manipulate the electoral processes to favour the APC.
The party cautioned that the situation was already generating tension in the state, given the insistence of the people for a transparent, free and credible election that would only reflect their wishes and aspirations at the polls.
“Our party forewarns the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Yakubu Mahmood, not to cause trouble in Kogi State by immediately declaring the mode of transmission of results given the claims by the commission, before the Presidential Election Petition Panel, that it does not have a server.”
The PDP charged the INEC chairman not to allow the commission to be entangled with the sinister plots of the APC and that he should immediately clear the air on the manner of accreditation of voters, checking of voter register disparities, the modality for voting as well as whether the commission will deploy manual or electronic transmission of election results to the final declaration.
“The PDP wants INEC to know that the party and the people of Kogi State are not leaving anything to chance in this election.
“For the people of Kogi State, this election marks their irrevocable determination to entrench a new order in their state and they are not ready to accept any process that does not point to assurances of a transparent, credible, free and fair election.
“Our party, therefore, requests the management of INEC to provide answers to these crucial issues within the next 24 hours as its silence is already spawning anxieties, which are capable of triggering serious crisis ahead of the election,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, yesterday, disqualified the deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Bayelsa State, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo.
The court, in a judgement by Justice Inyang Ekwo, invalidated Degi-Eremienyo’s participation in the governorship election scheduled for Saturday, November 16, after it found him guilty of supplying false information to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The judgement followed a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1101/2019 which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), instituted before the court.
Cited as defendants in the matter were Bayelsa APC governorship candidate, David Lyon, Degi-Eremienyo and INEC.
The court said it was satisfied that the APC deputy governorship candidate gave false information in the form CF0001 he submitted to INEC to contest the election.
It held that all the documents containing his educational qualifications bore different names.
But the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said, yesterday, it was ready for the smooth conduct of Saturday’s governorship election in Bayelsa and Kogi States
The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, stated this at a stakeholders’ meeting in Lokoja.
Yakubu said 12 out of the 14-point steps for the smooth conduct of the election had been achieved.
He said: “Only four days to the election, how prepared is INEC?
“The short answer is that we are ready. So far, the commission has successfully implemented 12 out of the 14-point plan for the election as required by law. We have just two more activities outstanding.
“The first one is the last day of the campaign which is at midnight on Thursday, November 14, 2019. The second is the Election Day itself which is Saturday, November 16.
“The commission has delivered non-sensitive materials for the election to our office here in Lokoja. The sensitive materials for both the governorship and Kogi West Senatorial re-run elections are ready.
“As usual they are being handled by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The normal process of inspection and distribution of sensitive materials within the state will be done in the presence of party leaders, security agencies and the media.
“We are combining the governorship election with the court-ordered re-run election for the Kogi West Senatorial District in seven local government areas.”
He urged stakeholders to abide by the slogan, “Election No Be War, Vote Not fight,” saying he was praying the Almighty God to guide INEC’s efforts towards hitch-free conduct of the election.
But reacting to the court verdict, disqualifying Senator Biobrakumo Degi-Eremiyon, running mate to the party governorship candidate, Chief David Lyon, the All Progressive Congress in Bayelsa State described it as travesty of justice.
The Publicity Secretary of the party, Doifie Buokoribo, in a statement, yesterday, said, “The judgement occasioned a miscarriage of justice, is glaringly perverse and against the weight of evidence before the court. We are totally surprised that the court could despite the objections by our lawyers, go ahead to determine a weighty criminal allegation of falsification and fraud solely on the bases of affidavit evidence contrary to well established judicial precedents that such must be proved beyond reasonable doubt by calling oral evidence.
“We strongly believe that the judgment cannot withstand a superior judicial scrutiny, therefore, our lawyers have filed a notice of appeal and other court processes to arrest the execution of the judgment pending the outcome of the appeal.
“We call on all our members and supporters not to be distracted but continue to peacefully mobilize for the November 16, 2019 elections.”
Meanwhile, Senior Advocate of Nigeria and constitutional lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome, has explained that the legal effect of the disqualification of the deputy governorship candidate of the APC in Bayelsa State under the Constitution and the Electoral Act (except reversed) on appeal, simply means that the APC has no governorship candidate at all in the November 16, 2019 gubernatorial elections.
Ozekhome while reacting to the Federal High Court, Abuja, ruling by Justice Inyang Ekwo disqualifying the deputy governorship candidate of the APC, Senator Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, over false information given in his Form CF001 submitted to INEC for the November 16 gubernatorial elections in Bayelsa State said: “In a landmark judgement, in a suit instituted by the PDP against the APC candidate, David Lyon and his running mate, Biobarakuma, the judge found and held that Biobarakuma gave false information in relation to his educational qualifications and went ahead to depose to an affidavit to correct the discrepancies. The judge held that all his documents bore different names and therefore disqualified him from contesting the forthcoming governorship elections.
“The legal effect of the disqualification of the deputy governorship candidate of the APC in Bayelsa State under the Constitution and the Electoral Act (except reversed) on appeal, simply means that the APC has no governorship candidate at all in the November 16, 2019 gubernatorial elections. The reason is simple. By virtue of section 187(1) of the 1999 Constitution, ’a candidate for the office of Governor of a State shall not be deemed to have been validly nominated for such office unless he nominates another candidate as his associate for his running for the office of Governor, who is to occupy the office of deputy governor and that candidate shall be deemed to have been duly elected to the office of deputy governor if the candidate who nominated him is duly elected as Governor in accordance with the said provisions’.
“Section 186 which precedes this section 187 creates the office of deputy governor. Section 187(2) emphatically states that all the provisions regarding qualification for election, tenure of office, disqualifications, declaration of assets and liabilities and oath of governor shall equally apply to the office of deputy governor as if references to governor were references to deputy governor.
“What this simply means is that any ticket devoid of a joint running mate is automatically invalid, null, void and of no effect whatsoever, because it is simply unconstitutional. The Constitution envisions and has deliberately made a governorship candidate to be a Siamese twin with the deputy governorship candidate in any election, sharing the same unbreakable umbilical cord. One without the other is not competent to contest. It will tantamount to a futile attempt to play Hamlet without the Prince of Denmark or to argue that six is not the same as half a dozen. Where a governorship candidate cannot, therefore, produce a deputy governorship candidate, his candidature lapses into historical electoral oblivion. His aspiration abates and dies prematurely and completely as dead as dodo. This is the law. No sentiments about it. No lachrymal effusion. No politics.”