Connect with us

Headline

Tinubu: Melaye Testifies In Court, Justifies Refusal To Sign Presidential Poll Result

Published

on

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Kogi State, Senator Dino Melaye, on Friday, testified as a star witness in the petition seeking to nullify President Bola Tinubu’s election.

Melaye mounted the box as the 22nd witness in the case that the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, filed against Tinubu before the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, sitting in Abuja.

Advertisement

Led in evidence by Atiku’s lead counsel, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, Melaye, who hitherto represented Kogi West in the Senate, told the court that he served as the National Collation Officer of the PDP for the presidential poll that held on February 25.

Melaye told the Justice Haruna Tsammani-led five-member panel of the court that he refused to sign the final result the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, used to declare Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, as winner of the presidential contest.

According to him, “the said result was wrongly computed and announced. That was why I refused to sign it because I don’t endorse fraud.”

Advertisement

While being cross-examined by INEC’s lawyer, Mr. Abubakar Mahmood, SAN, Melaye, told the court that though he voted in Kogi state on the election day, he immediately left for Abuja to perform the task that was assigned to him by his party.

He told the court that though the party had agents in all polling units across the federation, however, some of the agents also declined to sign copies of election results in their locations owing to widespread electoral malpractices they observed.

“My lords, it is not true that all the agents signed results of the election across the federation. Not all of them signed. I may not give you the specific details or actual number of our agents that did not sign the results in protest.”

Advertisement

READ ALSO: Obasanjo Speaks On Feud With Tinubu As Lagos Gov

He told the court that as lawmaker that was involved in the amendment of the Electoral Act, he knew that the law made it mandatory that results from polling units, should be electronically transmitted to INEC’s IReV portal.

Alleging that result of the presidential election was manipulated, the PW-22, told the court that evidence at the disposal of the Atiku and the PDP, established that results of the election in the IReV portal, was different from what was announced by the INEC.

Advertisement

“My lords, exhibits have shown that result on the IReV was at variance with what was announced.

“What was brought to Abuja by State Returning Officers was totally different from what transpired in the states,” he added.

Asked if his evidence before the court was based on what he was told by other agents of the party, Melaye, said: “As a National Collation Officer of my party, I was just like the INEC Chairman, who even though he was not all over the country, but he still announced results he received from all over the country.

Advertisement

“So, my statement on oath before this court was based on what I personally experienced and reports from our agents, as well as from our Situation Room.

“We received information from agents all over the country and some of them were live feed, with the aid of technology.”

Asked if he would be surprised to know that his statement on oath was the same thing, word for word, with a statement by another witness in the matter, Melaye, replied: “My lords, there is no way I could know what another person stated. I don’t have celestial powers. I cannot be surprised about what I don’t know.”

Advertisement

On the allegation that INEC deployed a device management system that quarantined and allocated votes in Tinubu’s favour, Melaye, said he got to know about the said device through a press statement the INEC issued before the election.

Physically, I did not see the mechanism, but I saw a statement released by INEC, where it narrated that scenario.”

READ ALSO: Presidential Tribunal: Peter Obi Produces Software Engineer As Witness

Advertisement

Asked if he never considered that such allegation could be based on speculation, the witness, said: “With the statement coming from INEC, I do not see it as speculation.”

Asked how he got information to back his allegation that results of the election were manipulated in Borno, Benue, Kano and Lagos state, Melaye, said: “My lords, I was in those states, technically, because there was live feed from our agents and I was viewing what was happening.”

While also being cross examined by President Tinubu’s lawyer, Melaye, Chief Akin Olujinmi, SAN, the former lawmaker insisted that INEC’s failure to transmit results of the presidential election, was an infringement of the law.

Advertisement

However, he noted that ordinarily, delay in transmission of the results would not have posed a problem if they would not be manipulated along the process.

Ideally, such delay is not supposed to change the results, but we can all see that this election was not an ideal situation.”

He told the court that the petitioners engaged a statistician that helped them to establish that the presidential election was rigged with “massive votes deducted” from Atiku.

Advertisement

Answering questions from APC’s lawyer, Mr. Afolabi Fashanu, SAN, Melaye, further maintained that “there were unlawful allocation of votes to the 2nd Defendant (Tinubu),” using a technology he said was imported from China.

READ ALSO: Court Admits In Evidence Two Video Clips Supporting Obi’s Petition

Meanwhile, shortly after he was discharged from the witness box, counsel for the Petitioners, Chief Uche, SAN, tendered in evidence, certified copies of polling unit results from 13 Local Government Areas in Nasarawa state.

Advertisement

 

He told the court that though INEC was subpoenaed to produce the said results contained in Forms EC8A, from 26 states, it, however, only brought that of Nasarawa state.

More so, Uche, SAN, also certified copies of INEC’s Forms EC40G from Nasarawa state, which he said was the summary of polling units where elections did not hold, was disrupted or outrightly cancelled.

Advertisement

The Justice Tsammani-led panel adjourned further hearing in the matter till Monday.
VANGUARD

Advertisement

Headline

US Commits $32.5m To Support Food Security In Nigeria

Published

on

The United States Government has committed $32.5m to the United Nations World Food Programme to support food and nutrition assistance for hundreds of thousands of people affected by conflict in Nigeria.

According to a statement released by the US Embassy in Abuja on Wednesday, the funding will enable WFP Nigeria to reach approximately 764,205 vulnerable individuals in the Northeast and Northwest regions of the country.

Advertisement

These areas have been severely impacted by ongoing insecurity and displacement, with millions struggling to access necessities.

The assistance package includes general food distributions as well as targeted nutritional support.

READ ALSO:Ghana’s President Sacks Chief Justice Over Corruption Allegations

Advertisement

Among the beneficiaries are 41,569 pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls, and 43,235 children who will receive specialised nutrition support through electronic food vouchers, according to the statement.

World Food Program Nigeria, with US Government’s contribution of $32.5m, will provide food assistance and nutrition support to internally displaced persons across conflict-affected areas.

“With the US Government’s donation, the World Food Programme Nigeria will provide food and nutrition assistance to 764,205 beneficiaries across Northeast and Northwest Nigeria.

Advertisement

“This includes complementary nutrition top-ups for 41,569 pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls and 43,235 children through electronic food vouchers,” the statement read.

READ ALSO:Nigerian Man Pleads Guilty In US To $405,000 Romance Scam Against American Women

On December 18, 2024, PUNCH Online reported that the United States Agency for International Development has denounced recent media reports misrepresenting US agricultural initiatives in Nigeria, stating that its programmes operate transparently and align with the country’s laws.

Advertisement

In a statement issued by the US Mission in Nigeria, USAID highlighted the significant achievements of its agricultural collaboration with Nigeria, which it claimed has supported over five million Nigerian farmers since 2019.

The agency maintained it has boosted food production and strengthened rural economies across the country through its efforts.

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Headline

UK To Ban Sale Of Energy Drinks To Children

Published

on

The United Kingdom government has unveiled plans to prohibit the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks, including popular brands such as Red Bull, to anyone under the age of 16 in England.

Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, announcing the move on Wednesday, said the step was aimed at safeguarding young people’s wellbeing.

Advertisement

By stopping children from buying these drinks, we’re laying the groundwork for healthier and happier generations,” he explained.

READ ALSO:UK Bars Over 100 Job Roles From Foreign Recruitment To Curb Migration

Government figures suggest that up to one in three teenagers aged 13 to 16 regularly consume energy drinks, many of which contain more caffeine than two cups of coffee.

Advertisement

While most major supermarkets already enforce a voluntary restriction, the new policy would make it a nationwide rule.

How can we expect pupils to thrive in the classroom if they’re running on the equivalent of a double espresso every day?” Streeting asked, stressing that the government was responding to concerns raised by parents and teachers. “We’re determined to address the root causes of poor health and educational struggles head-on.”

 

Advertisement

 

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Headline

Indian Man Gets Death Sentence For Burning Wife Alive Over Skin Colour

Published

on

A court in India recently sentenced a man to death for setting his wife, Lakshmi, ablaze alive due to her dark skin colour. This harsh punishment reflects the gravity of the crime and its impact on society.

As reported by BBC on Wednesday, the attack on Lakshmi took place on the night of 24 June 2017, the murder dates eight years back, and the judgment, delivered at the weekend, has made headlines in a country where public obsession with colourism is well documented.

Advertisement

The attack on Lakshmi took place on the night of 24 June 2017, according to the court order seen by the BBC.

Before her death, Lakshmi revealed that her husband, Kishandas, frequently mocked her for being dark-skinned, calling her “kali” and body-shaming her since their marriage in 2016.

READ ALSO:NDLEA Intercepts Indian Lady With 72 Parcels Of Heroin ON n Chocolate Wraps

Advertisement

On the night of her attack, Kishandas brought a plastic bottle containing a brown liquid, purportedly a skin-lightening medicine.

According to Lakshmi’s statements, he applied the liquid on her body, and when she complained about a strong acid-like smell, he set her on fire with an incense stick.

Adding to the cruelty, Kishandas poured the remaining liquid on her while she was burning and then fled. Her family rushed her to the hospital, but she later died from her injuries.

Advertisement

The judge, Rahul Choudhary, condemned the act as not only a murder but “a crime against humanity,” stressing that Kishandas “broke her trust” and showed “excessive cruelty in throwing the remaining liquid on her” while she burned.

READ ALSO:25 Indian Passengers From Plane Held In France Freed

He described the case as fitting the “rarest of the rare” category, saying, “It will not be an exaggeration to say that this heart-rending brutal crime was not just against Lakshmi, but it’s a crime against humanity.”

Advertisement

He added, “It’s a crime that shocks the conscience of humanity, which cannot even be imagined in a healthy and civilised society.”

The public prosecutor called the verdict “historic,” hoping it would serve as “a lesson for others in society.”

READ ALSO:25 Indian Passengers From Plane Held In France Freed

Advertisement

He said, “A young woman in her early 20s was brutally murdered. She was someone’s sister, someone’s daughter; there were people who loved her. If we don’t save our daughters, then who would?”

This tragic story highlights the deep-rooted issue of colourism, where darker-skinned women face widespread discrimination and abuse.

Despite ongoing campaigns to challenge these prejudices, the preference for fair skin remains strongly embedded in many areas of life, continuing to cause immense harm. Until societal attitudes change, such heartbreaking incidents are likely to persist.

Advertisement

 

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending