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BREAKING: A‘Court Sacks Plateau Gov, Mutfwang

Published

2 years ago

November 19, 2023

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja, on Sunday, nullified the election of Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State.

The appellate court, in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel of Justices, held that Mutfwang was not validly nominated and sponsored by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to participate in the gubernatorial contest that held on March 18.

It held that all the votes that were credited to him and the PDP after the election amounted to wasted votes.

Consequently, the appellate court panel, led by Justice Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to withdraw the Certificate of Return that it earlier issued to Mutfwang of the PDP as winner of the governorship poll.

It ordered that the candidate that got the second majority lawful votes at the election, should be sworn in as governor of the state.

The judgement followed an appeal that was lodged against governor Muftwang’s election by the governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress, APC, in the state, Mr. Nentawe Goshwe.

INEC had declared that Mutfwang of the PDP won the gubernatorial contest with a total of 525,299 votes, ahead of the APC candidate, Goshwe, who polled 481,370 votes.

Dissatisfied with the outcome of the election, Goshwe, went before the Plateau State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal to challenge it.

He, among other things, contended that the PDP lacked a political structure in the states and was therefore incapable of validly nominating or sponsoring any candidate for the governorship poll.

Besides, he argued that the election of Mutfwang was not conducted in compliance with the Electoral Act, insisting that he did not win the majority of lawful votes cast during the election.

Meanwhile, a three-member panel of the tribunal headed by Justuce R. Irele-Ifijeh, in a unanimous decision, dismissed Goshwe’s petition as lacking in merit.

Not happy with the judgement of the tribunal, Goshwe brought the case before the appellate court, maintaining his ground that the PDP candidate, governor Muftwang, lacked the platform and legal qualification to contest the election.

He further alleged that the election was marred by over-voting and non-compliance with key provisions of the the 2022 Electoral Act.

While adopting his final brief of argument, Goshwe, through his team of lawyers led by Prof. Fakunle Olagoke, SAN, told the court that Mutfwang was not qualified to contest the election by virtue of a lack of valid sponsorship by a political party, contrary to section 177 (C) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.

However, the governor, through his counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, SAN, urged the court to dismiss the appeal and uphold the earlier verdict of the tribunal.

Agabi, SAN, argued that the issue of nomination and sponsorship of a candidate for an election was purely an internal affair of a political party which no court had the jurisdiction to wad into.

More so, he contended that the Appellant lacked the locus standi to query a nomination and sponsorship of the candidate of another political party.

Likewise, the counsel for the PDP, Mr. Emeka Etiaba, SAN, urged the court to strike out grounds 1 and 8 of the Appellant’s grounds of appeal, saying they lacked competence.

Etiaba, SAN, argued that governor Mutfwang emerged as gubernatorial flag-bearer of the PDP, through a validly conducted primary election he said was duly monitored by INEC.

Delivering its judgement in the matter on Sunday, the appellate court upheld the appeal and nullified the election of governor Mutfwang.

Other Justices on the panel were; Muhammed Mustapha and Okon Abang.

It will be recalled that the same panel of the appellate court had on November 7, also sacked a Senator and three members of the House of Representatives in the state that won their respective elections on the platform of the PDP.

The panel based its decision on failure of the PDP to fully comply with a court order that was made in 2022, which it said directed the party to conduct congress in the 17 Local Government Areas in the state.

It held that an evidence the PDP produced to prove that it complied with the order, showed that 12 LGAs were excluded in a purported congress it held to select its candidates for the 2023 general elections.

The appellate court, therefore, held that though the lawmakers won their respective seats during the National Assembly election that held on February 25, all the scores that were credited them, amounted to wasted votes as they were not valid candidates.

News

ITF Warns Organisations, Employers Against Rejection Of IT Students

Published

2 hours ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

The Industrial Training Fund (ITF) has warned organisations and employers nationwide against rejecting students seeking attachment for their Industrial Training (IT) exercises.

ITF Area Manager in Bauchi, Dr Ashore Paul, issued the warning on Thursday during the orientation exercise for prospective IT students of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi.

Represented by Mrs Nanzem Yilshuut, Head of Training at the ITF Bauchi Area Office, Paul said that “the act establishing the Fund mandates every organisation to accept students for industrial attachment.”

He further stated that any employer or organisation found in breach of these provisions was liable to conviction and sanctions.

Paul also urged the prospective IT students to adhere to the rules and regulations of any organisation they joined and to be willing to learn and fulfill their responsibilities.

“When these students come back, we expect that there is a difference.

“They should have learned something new because definitely, what they learned in school, would be expected to be put into practicals.

“This will help them in their academics and also assist them in their future endeavours.

“They must participate 100 per cent, they must be disciplined and they must be willing to learn.

“We go round to ensure that they are doing what they are expected to do at their places of attachment.

“When we go for supervision, we ensure that what they are learning is in line with their courses,” he said.

The Rector of the institution, Sani Usman, said that the industrial attachment was an activity that enabled polytechnics to fulfill their mandate as technology and skill-driven institutions.

“Our students are given industrial experience during their first year so as to be registered in their minds that all of them are meant to be skilled class men and women and that is why the industrial attachment is very important.

“It enables them to build on what they have learned in their respective classrooms and practicals during the year,” he said.

Usman emphasised the importance of proper supervision during industrial training.

According to him, it will ensure students not only attend their placements but also carry out their assigned tasks effectively.

“The supervision is also to see that the employers or the places they have been sent to do their Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) do not exploit them to the level that is not required by the institution”, he said.

He further revealed that 3,000 students across all departments in the institution were going for this year’s SIWES.

News

Smokers Risk Cardiac Arrest, Expert Warns

Published

3 hours ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

A Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery, in the department of surgery, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of Uyo, Prof Eyo Ekpe has warned cigarettes smokers and patients with diabetes to take adequate of their chest in order not to fall a victim of cardiac arrest .

He said that these health conditions trigger certain types of abnormal heartbeats called arrhythmias responsible for sudden cardiac arrest.

Professor Ekpe gave the warning on Wednesday while delivering the 117th Inaugural Lecturer of the University of Uyo, titled “My Chest! My Chest!! My Chest!!!: Relieving Chest Pain, Preventing Death and Restoring Health”

He disclosed that many Nigerians have died for ignoring cardiac arrest triggers, preventing them, or seeking late medical attention to chest related ailments.

“Chest pain should not be ignored. Symptom of chest pain that is reported early would afford the clinician the opportunity to obtain adequate medical history from the person, medically examine the person thoroughly, optimally conduct the necessary laboratory tests to unravel the cause, and apply an evidence based treatment modality to relieve the chest pain, prevent death and restore heath.

“People should guard their heart diligently to prevent heart attack. Cigarette should not be smoked, high blood pressure should be prevented or controlled, diabetes mellitus should be prevented or controlled, and high blood cholesterol and lipoprotein should be prevented or controlled. A culture of regular physical exercise must be intentionally domesticated.

“People should guard their heart diligently to prevent cardiac arrest. Causes and triggers of arrhythmias should be prevented by preventing stress, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, coronary artery disease and electrolyte disorders, and avoiding cigarette smoking and alcohol abuse,” he stated.

Ekpe said medical consultation for chest problems should be with qualified medical doctors to avoid misdiagnosis, wrong treatment and complications, adding that regular medical checks and timely reports of symptoms of ailments must be prioritised.

“Safe-driving habit and road safety must be taken as a serious business. Seat restrained-belt should be used by all occupants of moving vehicles.

“Bicycles, motorcycles and tricycles should not ply traffic-congested roads. All victims of chest pain and chest injuries must be attended to by qualified medical doctors in a timely manner,” he advised.

News

FirstBank’s Digital Banking Channels Suffers Downtime

Published

4 hours ago

September 4, 2025

Editor

FirstBank has suffered a temporary disruption to its major digital banking channels, which will prevent some customers from completing transactions.

In a notice issued on Thursday, the bank said the downtime is affecting services on FirstMobile, FirstOnline, and its *894# USSD platforms.

“Please be informed that we are currently experiencing some downtime affecting transactions to other banks on FirstMobile, FirstOnline, and USSD platforms. Customers may therefore experience delayed or declined transactions,” the circular read.

The bank apologised for the inconvenience and assured customers that its technical team, working with partner service providers, is making every effort to restore full services as quickly as possible.

The disruption occurred less than two months after FirstBank introduced facial biometric authentication on its FirstMobile app, designed to enhance the customer experience and security.