“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning”. — Psalm 30:5
9th day of December, 2024, I wrote and posted an exegesis of the Asue Ighodalo petition and the defence INEC filed. The conclusion was that INEC had no defence or that the defence was tepid and of no moment.
It was therefore ludicrous to read grotesque essays by a certain John Mayaki, who is neither a lawyer nor an official spokesman of Monday Okpebholo labouring to trivialize the Asue Ighodalo petition. I am sure he has not even seen the petition and the defence filed by INEC but because he has to do his hatchet job with which he was hired by Jarrett Tenebe on a promissory note of Edo government facilitating an agriculture grant for him in the future( according to sources close to said Jarret Tenebe), Mayaki went to realm beyond him to write complete bollocks to mislead the general populace.
I have been inundated by calls and messages from a cross section of Edo people who have become worried by the false narratives Mayaki and the APC are pushing about the state of things at the Edo Governorship Tribunal,hence this essay, to situate things in the correct perspective.
Those who seek broader analysis of the petition and the defence should visit my post of 9th December,2024 which is still on my Facebook page as this enstante intervention would only summarize the Asue Ighodalo petition and why it will sail through.
The petition is built of 4 segments or pillars warehoused under two separate roofs.
Non-Compliance with the Electoral Act
1. Failure to record serial numbers of sensitive materials (ballot papers, result sheets, BVAS machines) in the prescribed form. This requirement is seen in Section 73(2) of the Electoral Act and clause 2.3.6 (b) in INEC’s Manual for Election Officials; and is a strict liability clause. Failure to do so in *any* polling unit renders the election in that unit *invalid*. There are 320 polling units affected by this.
2. Over-Voting. Here Asue Ighodalo is alleging that in 133 polling units the number of votes cast was more than the number of accredited voters. This was determined by an examination of polling unit results and the BVAS extract/machines. Instead of canceling these results, INEC collated them. APC of course won in these units where there were over-voting. Asue Ighodalo is asking that the results be canceled.
Majority of lawful votes
1. Here we have 236 polling units where the incorrect unit results were collated. This is the sub-head where instead of using the correct results recorded at the PUs and uploaded onto the Irev portal; INEC manufactured results sheets either unsigned by any agent or clearly manipulated and used these to declare a winner. Ighodalo is asking the Tribunal to collate the correct results as captured in their Irev CTCs and PDP agents copies.
2. Failure to collate Ikpoba Okha Ward 2 results. Here INEC curiously omitted results from 76 out of 77 PUs in this ward. Only one PU had the form EC40G uploaded onto the Irev portal. All the others did not have polling unit results uploaded *and* BVAS machines shows that accreditation took place. INEC claimed there was BVAS bypass but provided no evidence of this. Ighodalo is therefore asking the courts to collate the results in this ward.
The above is the case of Asue Ighodalo in a nutshell.
Ighodalo did not need to call thousands of witnesses to prove his case. It was why I laughed at the ignorance of John Mayaki and other Monday Okpebholo hirelings when they shamelessly showed their ignorance trying to mock the PDP and Asue Ighodalo for presenting only twelve witnesses.
Section 137 of the Electoral Act says when alleging non-compliance, oral evidence is not required if documents tendered manifestly prove the said non-compliance. This is why the lawyers to Asue Ighodalo did not call the 453 polling unit agents, as the CTCs and original documents proved the case.
With all these clear evidence of non compliance by INEC, over voting, wrong collation of results and non serialization of sensitive materials, INEC had no defence ,quickly closing its case like a defiant armed robber facing death by firing squad who has resigned to fate and accepted a just punishment albeit without any show of penitence.
Only INEC could have defended the EC25B issue; as the requirement to comply is INEC’s alone. INEC’s failure to put anyone on the stand has left the APC in a fatal quagmire.
Why then are people like John Mayaki, Jarret Tenebe Etinosa Igiebor and others showing much confidence on social media spaces? It is called Dutch courage and their belief that President Bola Tinubu will step in to save the day.
I honestly did not want to respond to John Mayaki’s mischiefs of the last few weeks, especially on the Tribunal situation, because he is a friend I still hold in high esteem and I still have many friends in the APC, but seeing the anxiety of a wide range of Edo people and seeing how government in Edo State have been so debased, with the ignorant, lions and tigers on the prowl, it became crucial to make an intervention. So this legal analysis is purely for educational purposes, to satisfy the frenzied curiosity of a wide range of Edo people, who daily inundate me with questions on the Tribunal and the fate of the mandate they freely gave Asue Ighodalo.Another reason for this exegesis of the Asue Ighodalo Petition is because I am a democrat and I also believe the current administration of Bola Tinubu holds a critical supervening influence on the sustenance of our democracy, being an Apostle of democracy himself.
Talking about democracy, democracy, the cornerstone of modern governance, is more than just a system of government; it is a beacon of hope, a promise of progress, and a testament to the power of the people. At its heart lies the principle of periodic elections, a mechanism that ensures accountability, responsiveness, and the peaceful transfer of power. In an era marked by globalization and rapid technological advancements, the importance of democratic principles have never been more pronounced. Democracy, with its emphasis on individual rights, freedom of expression, and the rule of law, provides a framework for just and equitable societies. It empowers citizens to participate in the decision-making processes that affect their lives, fostering a sense of ownership and civic responsibility.
The salient points of DAN Osa-Ogbegie’s essay titled “AN APPRAISAL OF THE ASUE IGHODALO’S PETITION AGAINST INEC: WILL THE JUDICIARY BE THE LAST HOPE OF THE PEOPLE?
“Therefore, upon a proper computation of the lawful votes at the election, the PDP scored 240, 234 lawful votes and the APC scored 201,032 votes respectively and as such the APC candidate was not duly elected by majority of lawful votes cast.
CONCLUSION
The Judiciary, the last hope of the people: a myth or reality?
The Judiciary has been the last recourse for disgruntled candidates who are not satisfied with the outcome of election results. This places a heavy burden on them to rise to its billing as the last hope of the people and the ultimate guardian of justice, the rule of law and democracy.
The task of doing political justice to whom it is due while entertaining election petitions is huge. The corruption it exposes judicial officers to is mind boggling. Political interests at play can be daunting, and the very lives and well-being of those involved can be threatened.Despite these, we call on the Judiciary to stand up for Nigeria and the good people of Edo State at this moment of great need for political justice. The refusal of Nigerians to troop out in their numbers during the supplementary elections cry out to the Judiciary for justice to whom it is due. It is only when Nigerians see stolen mandates, no matter by who, systematically restored to their rightful owners by the Judiciary, that their faith in the power of their votes will be restored and our democracy uplifted.
Here, then, is the question: would the judiciary ensure substantive justice so that their decisions reflect the will of the people, as expressed in elections, instead of perverting it? Or would the tribunal or the court be the continuation of politics by other means, whereby judges give subjective judgments that are not defined by law, evidence, and justice? Sadly, based on the past experiences, few can vouch for the judiciary to do the right thing for the good people of Edo State. Winning an election petition in Nigeria is a daunting task, but that it rarely happens does not mean it cannot happen now, if only the judiciary rises to the occasion or was it not Lord Denning in Parker v. Parker [1953] 2 All ER 127 who stated:
“What is the argument on the other side? Only this: that no case has been found in which it has been done before. That argument does not appeal to me in the least. If we never do anything which has not been done before, we shall never get anywhere. The law will stand still while the rest of the world goes on, and that will be bad for both.”
My advise to Edo people is to trust the judiciary to do what is right.
I leave you with a part of this immortal poem Walt Whitman, ‘On The Beach At Night’
Weep not, child,
Weep not, my darling,
With these kisses let me remove your tears;
The ravening clouds shall not long be victorious,
They shall not long possess the sky- shall devour the stars only in apparition:
Jupiter shall emerge- be patient- watch again another night- the Pleiades shall emerge,
They are immortal- all those stars, both silvery and golden, shall shine out again,
The great stars and the little ones shall shine out again- they endure;
The vast immortal suns, and the long-enduring pensive moons, shall again shine…
Daniel A. Noah Osa-Ogbegie is an Apostle of Edo renaissance and the Managing Cousel of NOAH ATTORNEYS, a Firm of Legal Practitioners in Benin City,Nigeria.
www.noahattorneys.com.ng
07052101632