Politics

Enugu LP Candidate, Edeoga Closes Cases Against Mbah, INEC With 30 Witnesses

Published

2 years ago

July 17, 2023

The Labour Party and its governorship candidate in the March 18 governorship election in Enugu State, Chijioke Edeoga have officially closed their case against the election that produced Peter Mbah of the Peoples Democratic Party the governor.

Edeoga and his party are challenging the election of Mbah of the Peoples Democratic Party insisting that it was rigged and that Mbah didn’t score the highest valid votes cast during the poll.

He is also praying the tribunal disqualify Mbah over an alleged forgery of the National Youth Service Corps discharge certificate.

The LP candidate closed his case after he tendered several documentary evidence and called a total of 30 witnesses that testified before the Enugu State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Enugu.

Among the exhibits he tendered before the court included polling unit results (form EC8A) in all the areas in contention; ward collation results (form EC8B) in the affected areas and a summary of the results as well as the declaration of the results.

The petitioners also tendered among many others, the NYSC produced documents of Oma and Partners; form EC9 of Chijioke Edeoga and Governor Peter Mbah as well as the BVAS machines which was brought to court by the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), who was subpoenaed to appear before the court on Sunday.

Though Edeoga initially told the court that he would call a total of 37 witnesses to testify in the matter, he closed his case on Sunday with the testimony of the Enugu State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), who appeared as the 18th witness for the petitioners.

At the resumed hearing on Sunday where the REC was subpoenaed to produce, BVAS machines, one of the senior staff of the commission, Victor Okafor, brought only five BVAS machines as against the number demanded by the petitioners.

Edeoga had applied for a subpoena on the REC to produce the BVAS machines from Owo, Ugbawka 1 Registration Areas in Nkanu East LGA as well as some other polling units in Igboeze North LGA.

But, during cross-examination by the petitioners’ counsel, Okafor who appeared on behalf of the REC, Dr Chukwuemeka Chukwu, said he was mandated to produce five BVAS machines before the tribunal.

He said that the information that was generated on the BVAS machines during the governorship election on March 18 was now contained in the BVAS report from the Headquarters in Abuja.

He said that he did not have the BVAS machines for the Owo and Ugbawka 1 registration areas of the Nkanu East Local Government Area, adding that the machines could only be identified by their codes.

According to him, the codes of the five BVAS machines brought included 14/08/06/003, 14/08/01/002, 14/08/06/005, 14/08/17/012, 14/08/01/003,

“All the machines contained the BVAS and accessories,” he said.

He said that he could not operate the BVAS machines beyond the information he earlier gave concerning them because they (machines) had not been used since after the election.

He also did not provide the certified true copies of the BVAS report of the 2023 governorship election polling unit- by-polling unit, as well as the CTC of voters, register used in Owo and Ugbawka 1 Registration Areas in Nkanu East LGA of the state.

He however insisted that he was not holding back any information, as according to him, all the documents they applied and paid for have been supplied to the petitioners.

The LP counsel, Mr Eyitayo Fatogun (SAN) tendered the five BVAS machines to the Tribunal as the PDP counsel, Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu, and Mbah’s counsel, Mr Alex Izinyon objected to the tendering of the machines, saying that their reasons would be made known during their final addresses.

The tribunal, however, admitted the BVAS machines as evidence.

Responding to the question by the counsel to Mbah, the INEC staff said that the machine could contain only successfully uploaded accredited information.

The two last witnesses called by the LP, Mr Abba Godwin and Amos Onyebuchi, who were LP agents, from Ette Central and Ikwele Ugbele respectively, both from Igbo-Etiti North LGA said that there was overvoting at their polling units during the governorship election.

Upon the close of the petitioner’s case, the lead counsel to the petitioner, Dr V.J Azinge (SAN) commended the Tribunal for their patience as she closed the case.

The INEC counsel, Mr H Okoli applied for a date to open their defense.

The Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice M. K Akano adjourned the matter till July 18 for INEC to open its defense.

PUNCH

Politics

Coalition: Why Tinubu Must Not Sleep —Primate Ayodele

Published

5 hours ago

July 5, 2025

Editor

Primate Elijah Ayodele of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church has warned President Bola Tinubu to be vigilant, stating that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is already making mistakes that could cost them victory in the 2027 elections.

According to Primate Ayodele, the APC’s national convention will mark the beginning of the party’s crisis.

“For APC, their convention is dangerous, and the convention will mark the beginning of APC’s crisis. Tinubu must not sleep because mistakes are being made already. I see serious problems in the party, but they are not yet seeing it,” he revealed.

Primate Ayodele also revealed that there are several things God has shown him regarding the 2027 elections, and more will be revealed at the launch of his annual prophecy book, “Warnings to the Nations,” on July 5, 2025.

The book, which has been published annually since 1994, features prophecies concerning various nations, world leaders, and influential individuals.

In addition to his warning to President Tinubu, Primate Ayodele advised opposition candidates against relying on their proposed coalition platform, All Democratic Alliance (ADA), saying it will fail.

Instead, he suggested they adopt the African Democratic Congress (ADC) platform, which he believes has the capacity to build something strong.

“ADA Party will not give you anything, ADC is better for a coalition front than ADA. Even SDP cannot make any tangible movement, let them use ADC so they won’t build on an infertile ground.”

The upcoming edition of “Warnings to the Nations” spans over 600 pages and features prophecies on Nigeria’s 2027 presidential election, Ghana’s President John Mahama, and prominent Nigerian billionaires such as Mike Adenuga, Aliko Dangote, and Abdul Samad Rabiu.

The book has a track record of accurately foretelling significant global events, with over 15,000 prophecies coming to pass since its inception.

Politics

Amaechi: I Will Resign As FCT Minister If… Wike

Published

19 hours ago

July 4, 2025

Editor

Federal Capital Territory FCT minister, Nyesom Wike has begged President Bola Tinubu to release the report of the forensic audit on the Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC, which he said indicted the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.

Wike vowed to resign if the report is released and its contents do not indict Amaechi.

Speaking on ‘Politics Today’ on Channels Television monitored on Friday in Abuja, Wike who was responding to allegations by Amaechi that he was corrupt, said Amaechi’s wife received N4 billion monthly from the NDDC to train Niger Delta women.

He said, unlike Amaechi, he does not come from a poor background, hence his sophisticated taste.

Wike said, “First of all, Amaechi’s wife was not an industrialist. She has never been, and that is why I call on Mr President to release the forensic audit of NDDC.

“Amaechi’s wife company, every month, got N4 billion to train Niger Delta women. That is N48 billion in one year alone, and the forensic audit report is there. Who killed it? It was Malami, then the Attorney General.

“That is one of the people who is now talking. Mr President should help Nigerians. You see, this is what I have always said. Mr President should help Nigerians. Please, release the forensic audit of the NDDC.

“I have said, let Mr President please do us a favour to release that document. Former Attorney General, Malami, killed that document to protect those who were concerned.

“I am not just saying what I am saying, let them release the document. If what I am saying is not in the document, I will resign at the Minister of the FCT. I said I will resign.

“I don’t worship office. What I am saying, let them release the forensic audit of the NDDC. I didn’t say the forensic audit was right, but I said, release the report of the forensic audit.

“That is how the wife became an industrialist – N4 billion every month to train Niger Delta women”, he stated.

Wike challenged the academic qualifications of Amaechi, describing them as less than average, and also faulted Amaechi’s claim that a Senator gave him (Amaechi) a Rolls-Royce but that he does not use it.

According to the FCT minister, the vehicle was given to Amaechi by a contractor who was executing about -0 percent of the projects in Rivers state. In contrast, the former Transport Minister was the governor.

Politics

Coalition: Abure-led LP Gives Obi 48 Hours To Leave Party

Published

2 days ago

July 3, 2025

Editor

The Abure-led faction of the Labour Party has given the presidential candidate of the party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, a 48 hours ultimatum to leave the party haven formally joined the coalition party.

This was contained in a statement signed by the faction’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, in Abuja, on Thursday.

He explained that the Labour Party under Abure’s leadership remains vehemently opposed to joining the coalition while dismissing members of the coalition as “power mongers whose only interest was self and not the people.”

The party warned Nigerians that the often mouthed ‘new Nigeria is Possible’ is a ruse and cannot be achieved with the assemblage of old, recycled, desperate and frustrated politicians in the coalition.

Ifoh said the party is aware that all those who mismanaged Nigeria over the years are the ones that gathered themselves in the coalition while noting that desperate politicians can’t birth new Nigeria.

He said, “We are aware of several nocturnal meetings between Peter Obi and some of our members, lobbying them to join him in his new party. We’re also aware that a number of them has refused to defect with him.

“Labour Party has consistently said it is not part of the coalition and therefore, any of our members who is part of the coalition is given within 48 hours to formally resign his membership of the party.

“Labour Party is not available for people with dual agenda, people with deceptive persona. The party will not avail itself to individuals who have one leg in one Party and another leg elsewhere.

“People who in the morning they will claim to be in the Labour Party and in the evening they are in coalition.

“Nearly 70 per cent of the Nigerian population are youths who are tired of the old order, tired of gerontocrats deciding their fate. The new Nigeria that the youths are dreaming of, is not what can be realized from what we are seeing in the coalition.

“These people are opportunistic politicians who are only interested in relaunching themselves into circle of power, people who are desperate to continue holding on to power.

“The new Nigeria of our dream can only be realised through the Labour Party, and the party is willing to lead Nigerians along that trajectory.

“I therefore urge all members of the party to remain loyal and keep the party structure intact ahead of future elections.”