The Supreme Court on Wednesday in a split judgment of four-to-three upheld the victory of Rotimi Akeredolu of the All Progrssives Congress (APC) in the Oct. 10, 2020 governorship election.
In the majority judgment delivered by Justice Emmanuel Agim, four of the seven-member panel, dismissed the appeal by Eyitayo Jegede and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the grounds that it was incompetent.
Justice Agim upheld an earlier judgment of the Court of Appeal, that the petition filed by Jegede and his party at the election tribunal was incompetent because they failed to include the Yobe Governor and Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of the APC, Mai Mala-Buni as a party.
In the minority judgment read by Justice Mary Peter-Odili, the court upheld the appeal and dismiss the cross appeal by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Akeredolu and the APC.
Odili and two other members of the panel were of the view that since the APC, for which Buni acted, was a party in the case, there was no need to include him as a party.
The main appeal, was filed by the candidate of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in the last governorship election in Ondo State, Eyitayo Jegede against Akeredolu, challenging the competence of APC’s sponsorship of Akeredolu for the election.
Jegede approached the electoral petitions tribunal praying that the declaration of Akeredolu as the winner of the election by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) should be set aside.
He also prayed the apex court to declare him winner on grounds that the emergence of the APC candidate breached the nation’s constitution.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that on July 16, the Court of Appeal led by Justice Theresa Orji-Abadua had dismissed the petition filed by Jegede while affirming Akeredolu as the winner of the poll.
In its verdict, the Appeal Court had out of 7 issues raised for determination resolved four and half in favour of Jegede and the rest two and half in favour of Akeredolu.
Not satisfied with the decision of the Appellate Court, both Akeredolu, Jegede, and INEC approached the Supreme Court for the invalidation of both the Election Petition Tribunal and Appeal Court.(NAN)
Gov Not Elected To Share Public Funds, say Muslim Cleric
Sikirat Shehu
Sheikh Habeebullah Adam, the Rector of the popular Markaz Agege (Lagos), has said that Kwara State government is not elected to share public funds for patronage, calling on patriots and lovers of the state to rise against opposition to any government based on selfish interest of a few.
The cleric who made this known in Ilorin at the one year prayer for AGF Folorunsho Abdulrazaq; the father of the Kwara State Governor Abdulraman Abdulrazaq, commended the Governor for his prudence, humility, spartan lifestyle, and his efforts to attend to the basic needs of the people.
He said: “I had envisaged that you (government officials) would be raining millions here today but to my satisfaction, you did not. Otherwise, we would have asked where you got the money from. This shows you are prudent in government.”
He however, I noted that the Kwara Governor has onerous tasks of delivering a state that would be at par with its contemporaries in basic facilities and human capital development indices as he urged the Governor and his party men to forgive one another and to avoid vengeance, he commended the Governor for his prudence, humility and efforts to reposition the state.
“If some people got to power and then left a trace of blood and agony in their treatment of dissents, you should not do that. Your ancestry does not align with that. Forgive anyone who may have wronged you in any way. That will be the greatest legacy for your late father who was a great man of all time,” the scholar told the Governor,” he said.
Meanwhile, he described the Late AGF Folorunsho Abdulrazaq (SAN), the first lawyer from the north as a man with uncommon brilliance, lion heart and a foremost figure in the development of Ilorin Emirate, Kwara State and Nigeria.
” AGF was a pioneer in law, a politician of repute, and educationaist. He was passionate about the progress and development of his town (Ilorin); he established the first private secondary school in Ilorin ( the then Ilorin College, now Government High School, Ilorin).
” For these and many enduring legacies left behind by Alh AGF Abdulrazaq he lives on. The late AGF Abdulrazaq is a pride of Nigeria and a phenomenon that life throws up only once in a century,” he declared.
He urged his children not to depart from his path especially his patience, commitment to education, humility, and love for humanity and development.
