NASS members’ bitter experience at tribunals

The battle is not over for a number of members of the National Assembly after the 2019 general election. DAPO FALADE examines why their fate currently seems to be hanging in the balance.

FOR most of the governors that won at the 2019 elections, they still have reasons to savour victory over their political arch rivals. Except for Katsina State, where the governor recorded a narrow victory at the tribunals, all the other governors whose elections were challenged at the election petition tribunals and had been disposed of, had their elections affirmed.

But the scenario is different in the camps of some members of the National Assembly and state Houses of Assembly, where the season of ecstasy appears to have been short-lived. The tribunals have upturned their victory and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw their Certificate of Return with immediate effect. Consequently, the commission has been ordered to conduct fresh elections in the affected federal constituencies within 90 days in consonance with the provisions of the Electoral Act (as amended).

Though the affected lawmakers through their counsels have indicated their intention to proceed to the Court of Appeal, the trauma unleashed on them can best be imagined. Having apparently settled down in the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly and shared in the privileges of office accruing to lawmakers, the affected lawmakers and their political parties now have the huge burden of regaining their ‘mandate’ through the appellate court or they should be prepared to face the electorate in a keener contest.

Senate

In the Red Chamber of the National Assembly, those adversely affected by the judgment at the elections petitions tribunals included Dino Melaye of the PDP from Kogi State, Chief Whip of the Senate and former governor of Imo State, Chief Orji Uzo Kalu, a high ranking senator from Delta State, James Manager and the spokesman of the Senate, Prince Dayo Adeyeye from Ekiti State.

Orji Kalu

In Umuahia, Abia State, the tribunal ordered the INEC to conduct a supplementary election within 90 days in eight wards in the Arochukwu Local Government Area and several polling unit in Ohafia and Isukwuato Local Government Areas were votes cancelled during senatorial election in Abia North senatorial district. The order of the tribunal followed the petition brought before it by the candidate of the PDP in the election, Chief Mao Ohuabunwa, challenging the victory of the Senate Chief Whip, Chief Orji Kalu, in the election. The three-man tribunal panel, led by Justice Cornelius Akintayo in a unanimous judgment read by Justice P. C. Igwe, ruled that the INEC did not comply substantially with the electoral laws during the election.

Kogi

Dino Melaye had his electoral victory of March 22, 2019 challenged by Senator Smart Adeyemi of the APC. The petition tribunal, sitting in Abuja, on August 30, ordered for a fresh election in Kogi West Senatorial District, even as Melaye described the judgment as a miscarriage of justice.

Delta

The electoral victory of a high-ranking senator, James Manager of the PDP, was challenged by former Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of the APC. The Delta State National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, sitting in Asaba, nullified the election of Manager and ordered for a fresh poll within 90 days.

Ekiti

Another big casualty of the National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal is the Senate spokesman, Senator Dayo Adeyeye of the APC. The tribunal upheld the petition of Senator Abiodun Olujinmi of the PDP and declared her the winner of the election held in February, even as Adeyeye described the judgment as nothing short of an open robbery.

House of Representatives

It was also a mix-bag of fortunes in the House of Representatives as some members elected on the platforms of the two major political parties had their victories upturned by the elections petitions tribunals.

Ogun    

The tribunal sitting in the capital of Ogun State, Abeokuta, nullified the election of Kolapo Osunsanya, representing Ijebu Central Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and ordered a rerun within 90 days. Osunsanya, a member of the APC, was sacked by the Justice Wakkil Alkali Gana-led election petitions tribunal. The Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Taiwo Shote, had filed a petition challenging Osunsanya’s declaration as winner of the February 23, 2019 election by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Ebonyi

The tribunal in Abakaliki upturned the victory of the member representing Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency, Lazarus Ogbe, of the PDP and declared the APC candidate, Chinedu Ogah, winner of the election. Ogah had proceeded to the tribunal and alleged that there were deductions of his votes in some of the polling units and wards during the election.

Cross-River

Alex Egbona who represents Abi/Yakurr Federal Constituency of Cross River State on the platform of the APC, was sacked by the Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Calabar.

In judgment delivered by Justice Vincent Agabata, the three-man tribunal declared that Egbona, as at February 23, 2019, was not qualified to contest the election. The tribunal went ahead to declared that the votes scored by Egbona were “defiant votes and therefore invalid and unlawful.”

Osun

In Osun State, the PDP suffered a setback as its candidate representing Ede Federal Constituency, Bamidele Salami, had his victory upturned by the elections petitions tribunal. This was as a result of the decision of the APC candidate, Adejare Bello, to challenge the outcome of the election.

The Justice Eyo Ita-led Election Petition Tribunal nullified the election on the ground that there was ample evidence of over-voting in the affected units in the constituency. It also held that after the cancellation of the results from the units, the margin of victory between the winner and the petitioner was less than the number of registered voters in the affected units.

It therefore ordered that rerun election should be held in 12 units of the federal constituency namely, Ede North (three units), Ede South (four units), Egbedore (three units) and Ejigbo (two units).

Ebonyi

Lazarus Ogbee of the PDP in Ikwo/Ezza South Federal Constituency, Ebonyi State, had his victory upturned by the National Assembly Elections Petitions Tribunal, sitting in Abakaliki, on September 9.

Chinedu Ogar of the APC sought for the cancellation of the results of the election as he insisted that his votes were erroneously reduced by INEC officials in some wards, including Ikwo and Onueke in Ezza.

In its judgment, the Justice Sika Henry Aprioku-led tribunal declared the candidate of the APC, Ogar, as the winner of the poll and ordered INEC to issue him a certificate of return with immediate effect.

Kano

Shamsudeen Dambazau who represented the APC Sumaila/Takai Federal Constituency, was sacked by the Election Petition Tribunal. Dambazau did not contest the election but scored the second highest votes in the APC primary in the constituency. He was therefore sworn into the House of Representatives after a federal High Court in Kano had disqualified the party’s candidate, Suleiman Abdulrahman Kawu.

However, the tribunal, headed by Onyekan Abdullahi, upheld an earlier decision by the Supreme Court which diswaulified Kawu on the ground that he did not participate in all the preliminary stages of the election process.

The tribunal also held that the candidate with the second highest votes during the election should be declared winner. It then ordered the INEC to issue a Certificate of Return to the PDP candidate, Surajo Idris Kanawa, having won the second highest votes in the election on February 23.

Delta

It was another sad turn of fate for the PDP in the state as its candidate in the election in Ethiope Federal Constituency, Benson Igbakpa, had his victory upturned as the election petition tribunal, sitting in Asaba, upheld the petition of the APC candidate in the election, Halims Agoda.

Igbakpa was sworn into the Green Chamber but Agoda approached the tribunal alleging gross irregularities. He urged the court to cancel the election or declare him the winner, having scored the highest number of votes. The tribunal upheld the petition and ordered the INEC to issue Agoda with a Certificate of Return.

Ondo

The PDP also lost its member representing Okitipupa/Irele Federal Constituency in the lower chamber of the National Assembly, Ikengboju Gboluga.

The three-man tribunal, headed by Justice Nuhu Adi, upturned the election of the PDP candidate on the ground of his allegiance to the United Kingdom, having acquired UK citizenship and thus ineligible to run for political office in Nigeria, in accordance with the provisions of Section 66, sub-section 1 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

The tribunal subsequently directed the INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return issue to Gboluga and issue same to the petitioner and the APC candidate in the election, Albert Akintoye of the APC.

Benue

The National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal ordered the INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to David Ogewu of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as it declared Samson Okwu of the PDP as the legitimate winner of the election for the Oju/Obi Federal Constituency, having led with a margin of 994 votes in two local government areas in the federal constituency.

Chairman of the tribunal, Justice A.A Adeleye, in his judgment on the petition by Okwu, faulted the INEC for declaring Ogewu as the winner without including the result of Obi Local Government Area in the final collation.