The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC has upheld the position of the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, Atiku Abubakar on the consolidation of the three petitions challenging the qualifications and declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the winner of the February 25 presidential election. The Court in the pre-hearing session report presented on Tuesday by Justice Stephen Jonah Ada announced the consolidation of the three petitions instituted by Atiku, Peter Obi of the Labour Party LP and the Allied People’s Movement APM. The Court agreed with Atiku’s lawyers that given the time-bound nature of the petitions, especially…
Author: Ifeanyi N.
The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, has ordered the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, Mr Peter Gregory Obi, and his party to present their joint petition against the February 25 presidential election within three weeks. The court also ordered the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who is the target of the petition, to defend his victory at the election along with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, within five days. Obi, through his counsel, Professor Awa Kalu SAN, had requested for seven weeks to establish their allegations against the disputed election that produced Tinubu. Chairman of the Court, Justice…
The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu, has cautioned the All Progressives Congress (APC) to stop blackmailing him, saying he did not engage in vote buying during the March 18 polls. InfoStride News reports that the Chairman of the APC in Ogun State, Yemi Sanusi, had petitioned the police, asking that Adebutu be investigated and arrested for alleged vote buying. But, in a statement made available to our correspondent in Abeokuta on Tuesday, the Media Director of Ladi Adebutu Campaign Organisation, Afolabi Orekoya, described the claim as unsubstantiated, saying the APC and its…
Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, approved on Monday the deposition of the traditional rulers of Piriga and Arak chiefdoms, His Highness, Jonathan Paragua Zamuna, and His Highness, General Aliyu Iliyah Yammah (retd), respectively. The Kaduna State Government disclosed this tweet via its Twitter handle. This means that both Zamuna and Yammah have ceased to hold their respective offices starting today. “The Kaduna State Ministry of Local Government has announced that Malam Nasir @elrufai has approved the deposition of His Highness Jonathan Paragua Zamuna, the Chief of Piriga, and His Highness General Aliyu Iliyah Yammah, the Chief of Arak, with…
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has taken the decision to dissolve the state’s executive council and terminate the appointments of all political officeholders. The announcement was made through a letter signed by Otunba Segun Ogunwuyi, the Chief of Staff to the Governor and Chairman of the Transition & Inauguration Committee. In the letter, Governor Makinde instructed all political officeholders to hand over any government properties they possess to the most senior civil servant in their respective ministries, departments, and agencies. The directive is effective immediately, starting from Tuesday, May 23, 2023. The communication from the Governor’s office stated, “I have…
Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi has announced the reinstatement of five of his key government officials that resigned to contest for the APC governorship ticket for the state. Ayoade Folashade, the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), made the pronouncement in a statement in Lokoja on Monday. The SSG said, “The Office of the Governor of Kogi, Yahaya Bello, has officially announced the immediate reinstatement of five key officials in the state.” She gave the names of individuals approved to resume in their previous positions including Jibrin Momoh, the state’s former Accountant General; Jamiu Abdulkarim-Asuku, the former chief of staff…
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State on Monday ordered all public officers holding political appointments to hand over affairs of their offices in line with established procedure. The directive is contained in a statement titled “Handover of Activates” from the office of the Secretary to the State Government and signed by permanent secretary, Bilkisu Maimota. The governor directed all commissioners, special advisers, chief executives of parastatals/government owned-companies and other political appointees to hand over to the permanent secretaries and directors of administration and general services in their respective establishments. The governor directed that all government properties in possession of the…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate in the February 25 presidential election, Bola Tinubu, on Monday opposed the consolidating of the petitions as raised by the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC). At the resumed hearing to consider the matter of consolidation, counsels to Tinubu, Akin Olujimi (SAN), and the APC, Charles Edosomwa (SAN), opposed the move to consolidate the three different petitions. They insisted that merging all the petitions would affect their ability to effectively defend all the issues raised by the petitioners. The senior lawyers maintained that the petitioners did not only raise various issues, but…
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has said that it will call one witness to testify in its petition at the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC). The party said that it would call only one witness and would need three days for the witness to testify. Reporting to the court on the agreed streamlining of witnesses, counsel to APM, Shehu Abubakar, said that the star witness would take 20 minutes to give the evidence-in-chief while cross-examination would be for 25 minutes and re-examination would be done in five minutes. Abubakar said that documents that would be relied on by each party…
Eyeing to bolster India’s footprint in the Indo-Pacific, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday showcased New Delhi as a “reliable” partner of the Pacific island nations as he said those considered trustworthy were “not standing by” the region in times of need, in what is being seen as an oblique reference to China. A friend in need is a friend indeed, Modi told top leaders of 14 Pacific Island nations at a summit, assuring that India is ready to share its capabilities and experiences with the region “without any hesitation” and that “we are with you in every way.” Referring…
The Ondo State Election Petition Tribunal on Monday struck out a petition filed by the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) against the senator-elect of Ondo North senatorial district, Pastor Jide Ipinsigba. Ruling on the case, Mrs Rose Soji, the chairman of the tribunal, said: “The motion on notice filed by the first petitioner, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), praying the tribunal to withdraw the petition is granted as prayed. The petition is hereby dismissed.” Earlier, NNPP counsel, Mr Segun Ogodo, had applied to withdraw the case and told the tribunal of his client’s interest in discontinuing the petition. “The…
The Supreme Court has adjourned until May 26 to deliver judgment in a case by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seeking the disqualification of President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu and Kashim Shettima, the vice-presidentShettimaub The PDP had urged the apex court to reverse the Court of Appeal judgment, led by Justice James Abundaga, which held that the party failed to establish its locus standi. Details soon…
Former Vice President and presidential candidate in the February 25 election, Atiku Abubakar and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) have thrown their weight behind the consolidation of the three petitions challenging the return of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a winner of the election. Atiku argued that merging his petition with that of Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and that of the Allied People’s Movement (APM) would engender quick disposal of the petitions. Besides, he canvassed that the interest of justice would prevail when the petitions are accorded expeditious hearing. At Monday’s proceedings, Atiku represented by Eyitayo Jegede, SAN,…
The Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, on Monday in Abuja turned down the request by the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar for the live streaming of proceedings of his petition against the election and declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as winner of the last presidential election. The Court held that the request was a novel and not supported with any law in the country for now. Chairman of the Court, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, who delivered the unanimous decision of the panel, said the request was not rooted from the petition Atiku filed before the…
President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to return to Nigeria on Sunday, May 21, 2023, after concluding his nine-day visit to Paris, France. His arrival marks eight days before his official inauguration as the 16th President of Nigeria. A statement issued by Tinubu’s media office and signed by Tunde Rahman highlighted that the purpose of the trip was to allow the President-elect to meticulously fine-tune his transition plans alongside his key aides, ensuring a smooth and well-prepared handover of power without any undue pressure. Tinubu’s return is expected at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, where he will receive…
An aide of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the just concluded February 25 election, Daniel Bwala, has claimed that Godswill Akpabio would not be elected as Senate President. Bwala gave this hint on Monday in a post via his Twitter handle. InfoStride News recalls that Akpabio, a former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, had been penciled down by his party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, to become the Senator President. He is currently facing opposition from the likes of Senators, Ali Ndume, Orji Uzor Kalu, Jibrin Barau, amongst others. However, Bwala claimed that…
Ebonyi Youths under the platform of coalition of Youth Leaders Forum, comprising all the major youth groups and NGOs, on Saturday, called on the gubernatorial candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, to withdraw all litigations against the Governor-elect, Francis Nwifuru. Recall that the governorship candidates of PDP, Mr. Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii and that of the APGA, Prof. Ifeanyi Benard Odoh, had dragged Nwifuru of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, to court, challenging the process that led to his victory during the last governorship election that took place on March 18, 2023.…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate in the February 25 election, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, have kicked against the proposal for the consolidation of the petitions challenging their return as joint winners of the election. The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) at the sitting on Monday had proposed to consolidate the three petitions filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, the Labour Party, LP, and its presidential candidate Peter Obi and the Allied People’s Movement (APM). The proposal made by the Chairman of the Court, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani, was predicated on…
A group, Free Nigeria Movement, has frowned at the alleged refusal to allow the All Progressives Congress, APC, access to electoral materials in the just-concluded governorship poll in Delta State. The group claimed that the PDP was attempting to cover up the alleged “manipulation” that took place in the election. Recall that Sheriff Oborevwori, candidate of the PDP, was declared the winner of the March 18 election with 360,234 votes. Oborevwori defeated Ovie Omo-Agege of the APC, who polled 240,229 votes. However, the APC and its candidate, Ovie Omo-Agege rejected the outcome of the election, alleging that the collation of…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russian forces weren’t occupying Bakhmut, casting doubt on Moscow’s claims that the eastern Ukrainian city has fallen. Responding to a reporter’s question about the status of the city at the Group of Seven meeting in Hiroshima, Japan, Zelenskyy said, Bakhmut is not occupied by the Russian Federation as of today. The fog of war made it impossible to confirm the situation on the ground in the invasion’s longest battle, and a series of comments from Ukrainian and Russian officials added confusion to the matter. Zelenskyy’s response in English to a question earlier…