ANPP asks court to void Obasanjo's election
From Emmanuel Onwubiko, Abuja
IN its final submission, the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) through its presidential candidate in the April 19, 2003 polls, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday asked the Justice Umaru Farouk-led presidential election petition tribunal to void the election of President Olusegun Obasanjo and order fresh polls.
Also, the party has filed a protest to the National Judicial Council (NJC) against six Court of Appeal justices alleging indiscretion in the verdict passed in favour of the Adamawa State Governor, Boni Haruna.
In his submission, made through his lead counsel, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), Buhari who instituted the petition in May last year, told the tribunal that the petitioners have discharged all the onus placed on them by law to warrant the success of this petition and` to invalidate the purported return of the 1st and 2nd respondents as President and Vice President respectively because:
The petitioners have established that the 1st respondent had been appointed into the office of the Head of State and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria on two previous occasions and this honourable court lacks the competence to inquire into the manner of appointment.
The petitioners have made out a case of undue influence against the 1st and 2nd respondents necessitating their disqualification in the election.
The petitioners have made out a case of substantial non-compliance with fundamental provisions of the Electoral Act, particularly:
Failure to certify electoral documents prior to use which as conceded by the pleadings of 1st and 2nd respondents are necessary to render the election authentic.
Employment by the 1st respondent of Resident Electoral Commissioners who are members of the 1st respondent's party, the PDP.
Failure to administer the necessary oath of allegiance and neutrality on the officials who conducted the election.
Failure by the 3rd and 4th respondents to hold a collation of results from the states before announcing any final result.
Deployment of armed men during the election as conceded in the 1st respondent's reply and inter alia.
Corporate manifestation of bias by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The 1st and 2nd respondents being guilty of undue influence in a case of corrupt practice has, by virtue of the provisions of Section 129 of the Electoral Act, been established against the two respondents.
In the face of allegation that the result pleaded in paragraph 4 of the petition were assigned figures not emanating from any election in the States, the respondents failed to prove that there was collation of results at the state or national level, which failure has rendered the purported election inconclusive.
With a substantial number of states invalidated either by concession by INEC or by proof of fundamental non-compliance, the 1st respondent is not capable of meeting the requirements of Section 134(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution to qualify for a return assuming without conceding that the election was generally conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act.
Buhari further urged the court to invalidate the election as urged in the petition, grant the reliefs therein sought, and make all necessary orders substantive or consequential as follows:
Allow the petition and invalidate the election on all the grounds filed before it.
Where the honourable court finds the 1st respondent (Obasanjo) not qualified to contest the election ab-inito, but that the election was conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act, void all votes cast for unqualified candidates and return the next placed candidate that is the 1st petitioner, provided that the 1st petitioner meet the requirements of Section 134 (2)(b) of the constitution.
Where the honourable court finds that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, invalidate the election and order a fresh one.
Where undue influence is established against the 1st and 2nd respondents, disqualify them from the election and order a bye-election amongst the remaining candidates.
Where the court invalidates the election in a number of states which rob the 1st respondent of 25 per cent of the votes cast is 2/3 of the states and the 1st respondent is qualified to contest the election and is not disqualified by virtue of Section 129 of the Electoral Act, order a run off election between the 1st respondent and the 1st petitioner.
The tribunal will re-convene today to hear the adoptions of the final addresses by the parties after which a judgment date would be fixed. The president through his lawyers led by Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) had earlier denied that the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the statutory provisions made for the presidential polls and prayed the panel to dismiss the suit by Buhari.
The Justices petitioned by the ANPP include: James Ogenyi Ogebe, Victor Aimepomo Oyeleye Omage, Pius Olayiwola Aderemi, Musa Dattijo Mohammad and Ikechi Francis Ogbuagu.
In a letter endorsed by the lead counsel who represented the party's governorship candidate, Adamu Muazu Modibbo, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), the party rejected the judgment and alleged that some of the judges were compromised to reach the verdict which nullified an earlier decision of the election tribunal that voided Haruna's election.
Ahamba, in his protest addressed to the Chief Justice of the Federation and Chairman of NJC Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais, the ANPP chieftain, prayed the council to sanction the Appeal Court Justices.
Ahamba said: "May I humbly send to you document relating to the judgment of the Court of Appeal panel with Ogebe Justice of Court of Appeal presiding and Aderemi, Justice of the Court of Appeal writing the leading judgment. The documents are the judgment of the court and the press statement made by me and a comprehensive critique of the judgment. My complaint on behalf of my clients is contained in the papers are being sent to you in your dual capacity as the chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) and the Chief Justice of Nigeria.
Justice Aderemi in his judgment at the Court of Appeal, Jos division, had stated: "Taking an overall view of the evidence presented by the petitioners and cross appellants, I say without any doubt in my mind that the totality of the evidence placed before the lower tribunal is absolutely inadequate even to prove the simplest of a criminal offence, very important to affect the appellants and cross respondents, ridiculous for convicting any of the appellants.
"And cross respondents with the commission of any electoral offence and, even if the reliefs sought in this court had been sought before the lower tribunal, then such evidence adduced is very scandalous if brought forward, as it has been to support the case of the charges of grave character as to make us order a nullification of the election and disqualify the cross respondent from participating in any bye-election.
"Finally, the totality of such evidence is very much na�ve if it is put up (as it has been done) to support the case that the first cross appellant be referred to the State Attorney-General of Adamawa for prosecution and an order that he vacate office and hand over to the honourable Speaker of the State House of Assembly."
Ahamba criticised the alleged bad language used in the text of the judgment and asserted that he filed the protest so that generations yet unborn will learn the lessons of the alleged indiscretion. He stated that his client took the decision because he knows that the Court of Appeal is the last court of competent jurisdiction in matters affecting the governorship polls.
But the National president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN) has severely criticised Ahamba's decision to upbraid the justices.
Similarly, the Alliance for Democracy's (AD) governorship candidate in the last polls in Delta State Chief Great Ovadje Ogboru yesterday said that he would drag Justice Tanko Yusuf of the Court of Appeal before the NJC.
Justice Yusuf is sitting at the head of the interlocutory application brought before the three Justices panel by Governor James Onanefe Ibori of Delta State challenging the decision of the Delta State Election Tribunal to relocate the sitting venue to Abuja in the matter between him and Ogboru. Ogboru said he was sending the petition because the chairman of the three justices panel has allegedly deliberately delayed the proceedings in favour of Ibori through alleged frivolous adjournments at the behest of the presiding Appeal Court Justice.
