How David Mark Reacted To Nullification Of His Election

The Court of Appeal sitting in Makurdi yesterday, voided the election of former Senate President and Nigeria's longest serving Senator, Mr David Mark as the Senator representing Benue South Senatorial District.

The appellate court ordered a fresh election within 90 days.

Here's David Mark's first reaction to the development.

“Whatever the situation may be, one thing I know is that my people are solidly behind me. They also appreciate the fact that I have done more than enough to lift up Idoma nation to a position of eminence in the contemporary political history of Nigeria.

“I won the election clean and clear. If we go back to the polls 100 times, I will still win convincingly.”

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NEMA to take relief materials to newly liberated towns.

The National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA has concluded plans to take relief materials to newly liberated towns in Borno State.

The North-East Zonal Coordinator of the agency, Alhaji Mohammed Kanar, disclosed this on Wednesday while overseeing the distribution of relief materials to internally displaced persons in Dikwa Local Government Area of the state.

“We are moving to Bama, Gwoza, Askira-Uba, Marte and Baga local government areas to distribute relief materials to liberated people in the areas,” he said.

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Boko Haram Adopts New Packaging For IED's

Terrorist group, Boko Haram now conceals Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs in attractive objects, says the Defence Headquarters.

The Director of Defence Information, Col. Rabi Abubakar disclosed this to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday during a media briefing in his office.

He urged members of the public to be wary of picking up nice looking objects around them.

“All these things we are doing is to make sure that the populace remains safe from the hands of these Boko Haram terrorists who are now devising different means of fighting through this issue of IED and even some cluster bombs which they conceal in attractive objects and drop in the streets for people to pick.

“We are using this platform to enlighten the citizens to make sure that our citizens do not fall victim on what could be avoided,” he said.

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Audu's death: Read Faleke's Letter To INEC.

Following the sudden death of Prince Abubakar Audu, APC's candidate in last Saturday's governorship election in Kogi State, his running mate, Mr James Faleke has written to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC asking to be declared the governor-elect of the state.

See the letter written to INEC by Faleke's counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN.

Although an unfortunate and saddening incident had occurred after the announcement of results of the election and subsequent pronouncement of INEC that the election was inconclusive, the point must quickly be made that INEC’s wrong declaration of inconclusiveness of the election and ordering a supplementary election in 91 polling units was arrived at, according to the Returning Officer; on the basis that the number of cancelled votes outnumbered the number with which the candidate of APC led the candidate of the PDP.

With much respect to INEC and the highly distinguished chairman, the reasoning of INEC is non sequitur. While as at Monday 23, November 2015, INEC still insisted that it was not aware of Prince Abubakar Audu’s transition, however, INEC later on directed the APC to go and conduct another primary election to nominate its candidate for the supplementary election in 91 polling units.

With much respect to INEC, this new directive as well, is unfounded, both legally and constitutionally . It can also not be reasonably or rationally defended.

Our client is of the opinion that INEC is inadvertently prompting an avoidable political and legal crisis. What INEC should do is to obey, respect and comply with the letter, spirit, intendment and tenor of the constitution, by not only declaring APC as the winner of the election, but by also declaring our client as Governor-elect.

May we draw Mr. Chairman’s attention to the clear and mandatory provision of section 68(1)(c) of the Electoral Act to the effect that any result declared by Returning Officer shall be final and binding, and can only be reviewed or upturned by an Election Tribunal.

In effect, the results already announced by INEC are binding, not only on all the parties, but also on INEC itself. We want to believe that INEC is not unaware of the binding decisions of our appellate courts on this issue.

Furthermore, by the provision of section 181(i) of the constitution, our client, who was the deputy governorship candidate or the associate of Prince Abubakar Audu at the already concluded election constitutionally and automatically becomes the governor-elect of the state. With much respect, INEC has no discretion in this matter.

May we advise, most humbly, that INEC should not confuse this situation with what is intended in section 33 of the Electoral Act because the situation on ground has nothing to do with changing or substitution of the name of a candidate before election.

In fairness to INEC, it had already announced the results of the election, and as at the time it so did, it honestly claimed ignorance of the death of Prince Abubakar Audu. In law and logic, no new candidate can inherit or be a beneficiary of the votes already cast, counted and declared by INEC before that candidate was nominated and purportedly sponsored.

Assuming without conceding that INEC is even right to order a supplementary election, the votes already cast, counted and declared on Saturday and Sunday, 21 and 22 November 2015 were votes for the joint constitutional ticket of Prince Abubakar Audu and our client.

Therefore, no new or supplementary candidate can hijack, aggregate, appropriate or inherit the said votes.

Assuming further, without conceding that supplementary election in 91 polling units can hold as being suggested by INEC, it is our client who should be the automatic candidate of the party, since APC cannot conduct primary election for the supplementary election in 91 polling units.

Chairman sir, this is a rather simple and straight forward matter which does not need any delay, foot dragging or procrastination. It is a constitutional imperative. Put in other way, INEC has a bounden duty to declare our client the winner of the election. Any attempt to conduct any supplementary election in any unit whatsoever and howsoever will amount to INEC breaching and flouting the constitution and our client would definitely challenge it.

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Senate confirms Prof Dambatta as NCC Chief Executive

The appointment of Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta as the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC was approved by the Senate on Thursday.

Dambatta had occupied the position in acting capacity since his appointment by President Muhammadu Buhari on August4 following the expiration of the tenure of Dr. Eugene Juwah as NCC Chief Executive Officer.

A statement  issued on Thursday by the Director of Public Affairs, NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo disclosed that the Senate confirmed Dambatta's appointment after a rigorous screening by its Committee on Communications headed by Senator Gilbert Nnaji.

Here is an excerpt from the statement.

“Before his appointment, he was the Acting Vice Chancellor, Kano State University of Science and Technology, Wudil.

“Born in Danbatta Local Government Council of Kano State, Prof. Danbatta obtained his BEng and MSc degrees from the Technical University of Wroclaw in Poland and his PhD from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) UK respectively.

“He has served as a lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Technology, Bayero University, Kano, for 28 years, where he taught courses in telecommunications engineering and electronics and held academic positions of Dean of the Faculty and Head of Department. His main responsibilities, in the university, included Deputy and Acting Dean of Students’ Affairs, Administrator of the Works Department and later, Director of the Centre for Information Technology (CIT).

“He was also a member of over 60 University committees and task forces, including numerous stints as Chairman.  In administrative and other responsibilities outside the university, he has served on over 20 committees, prominent among which was his Chairmanship of the implementation Committee of pioneer Deputy and Acting Vice-chancellor when it took off in 2001.  Prof. Danbatta has supervised more than 60 PhD, MEng and BEng projects in diverse areas of telecommunications.

“He has to his credit more than 50 articles in journals, conference proceedings and technical reports.  He is also the author of a six-chapter, 167 – page book titled – Elements of Static Engineering Electromagnetics.”

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Dasuki Gets Permission To Stay Away From Court

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Thursday granted permission to former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who has since November 4, 2015 been under house arrest , permission to be absent from court pending the determination of interlocutory applications filed by his lawyers and the Government of the Federation.

Dasuki had filed an interlocutory application asking the court for an order directing operatives of the Department of State Service to end their siege on his home in Abuja.

On its part, the Federal Government on November 20 filed an interlocutory application asking for the revocation of the bail granted Dasuki on September 1, 2015 by Justice Adeniyi Ademola on the grounds that the ex-NSA was under investigation for embezzlement of $2bn meant for the procurement of arms from 2007 to date.

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Audu's death: Read Faleke's Letter To INEC.

Following the sudden death of Prince Abubakar Audu, APC's candidate in last Saturday's governorship election in Kogi State, his running mate, Mr James Faleke has written to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC asking to be declared the governor-elect of the state.

See the letter written to INEC by Faleke's counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN.

Although an unfortunate and saddening incident had occurred after the announcement of results of the election and subsequent pronouncement of INEC that the election was inconclusive, the point must quickly be made that INEC’s wrong declaration of inconclusiveness of the election and ordering a supplementary election in 91 polling units was arrived at, according to the Returning Officer; on the basis that the number of cancelled votes outnumbered the number with which the candidate of APC led the candidate of the PDP.

With much respect to INEC and the highly distinguished chairman, the reasoning of INEC is non sequitur. While as at Monday 23, November 2015, INEC still insisted that it was not aware of Prince Abubakar Audu’s transition, however, INEC later on directed the APC to go and conduct another primary election to nominate its candidate for the supplementary election in 91 polling units.

With much respect to INEC, this new directive as well, is unfounded, both legally and constitutionally . It can also not be reasonably or rationally defended.

Our client is of the opinion that INEC is inadvertently prompting an avoidable political and legal crisis. What INEC should do is to obey, respect and comply with the letter, spirit, intendment and tenor of the constitution, by not only declaring APC as the winner of the election, but by also declaring our client as Governor-elect.

May we draw Mr. Chairman’s attention to the clear and mandatory provision of section 68(1)(c) of the Electoral Act to the effect that any result declared by Returning Officer shall be final and binding, and can only be reviewed or upturned by an Election Tribunal.

In effect, the results already announced by INEC are binding, not only on all the parties, but also on INEC itself. We want to believe that INEC is not unaware of the binding decisions of our appellate courts on this issue.

Furthermore, by the provision of section 181(i) of the constitution, our client, who was the deputy governorship candidate or the associate of Prince Abubakar Audu at the already concluded election constitutionally and automatically becomes the governor-elect of the state. With much respect, INEC has no discretion in this matter.

May we advise, most humbly, that INEC should not confuse this situation with what is intended in section 33 of the Electoral Act because the situation on ground has nothing to do with changing or substitution of the name of a candidate before election.

In fairness to INEC, it had already announced the results of the election, and as at the time it so did, it honestly claimed ignorance of the death of Prince Abubakar Audu. In law and logic, no new candidate can inherit or be a beneficiary of the votes already cast, counted and declared by INEC before that candidate was nominated and purportedly sponsored.

Assuming without conceding that INEC is even right to order a supplementary election, the votes already cast, counted and declared on Saturday and Sunday, 21 and 22 November 2015 were votes for the joint constitutional ticket of Prince Abubakar Audu and our client.

Therefore, no new or supplementary candidate can hijack, aggregate, appropriate or inherit the said votes.

Assuming further, without conceding that supplementary election in 91 polling units can hold as being suggested by INEC, it is our client who should be the automatic candidate of the party, since APC cannot conduct primary election for the supplementary election in 91 polling units.

Chairman sir, this is a rather simple and straight forward matter which does not need any delay, foot dragging or procrastination. It is a constitutional imperative. Put in other way, INEC has a bounden duty to declare our client the winner of the election. Any attempt to conduct any supplementary election in any unit whatsoever and howsoever will amount to INEC breaching and flouting the constitution and our client would definitely challenge it.

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