Wike boasts,says he is still Rivers state Gov

Firstclass newsline gathered that rivers State governor, Mr Nyesom
Wike, has declared that he remains the state governor, noting that he
would pursue the decision of the Rivers State Governorship Election
Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, which nullified the April 11, 2015
governorship election and ordered the Independent National Electoral
Commission (INEC) to conduct fresh election within 90 days, up to the
Supreme Court.
This came on the heels of the judgment of the tribunal headed by
Justice Suleiman Ambrosa, which upturned the election citing
irregularities and non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral
Act.
The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja had, on Saturday,
nullified the April 11, 2015 that produced Wike as governor of Rivers
State, citing irregularities and non-compliance with the Electoral
Act.
The three-member panel of Justices, headed by Justice Ambrosa, which
heard the petition filed by the APC and its governorship candidate in
Rivers State, Peterside, ordered INEC to conduct a fresh election
within 90 days.
The tribunal held that Wike was wrongly declared winner by INEC and
that the elections failed to comply substantially with the electoral
guidelines, noting that the petitioners (APC and Dakuku) were able to
establish that there was no compliance with the Electoral Act, adding
that the plaintiffs were also able to establish that there was
intimidation, harassment, snatching of ballot boxes, ballot papers and
lack of result sheets and late arrival of election materials.
It also agreed with the petitioners that there were cases of diversion
of election materials, ballot box stuffing, allocation of figures,
non-collation of result and failure to use card readers, noting that
all these made mockery of democracy.
Justice Ambrosa also added that the APC and its governorship candidate
adduced credible evidence and documents to prove all the allegations
against Wike's election, noting that the witnesses called by the
respondents in the petition became unreliable during
cross-examination, saying "they betrayed their character.
"Even officials of INEC who came as witnesses, at a point, claimed
ignorance of their own document," the tribunal held.
In the unanimous judgment delivered by Justice Ambrosa, the tribunal
held the Wike was not validly elected as governor of Rivers State and
ordered INEC to conduct fresh election within 90 days.
Reacting to the judgment, however, PDP's lead counsel, Chief Chris
Uche (SAN) said, "we will test the popularity of the judgment in the
Court of Appeal and possibly the Supreme Court".
Uche said it was wrong for the tribunal to have heavy weather on the
use of card reader when INEC itself admitted that both card readers
and manual process could be used where there are challenges.
He also faulted the judgment on the ground that it was delivered less
than 48 hours after parties in the petition adopted their written
addresses.
It will be recalled that INEC declared Wike winner of the April 11
election with 1,029,102 votes as against Peterside's 124,896 and the
petitioners, not satisfied with the conduct of the election, filed a
petition on May 3, seeking the nullification of the election in the
entire 23 local government areas of the state and an order for a fresh
election on the account of alleged substantial non-compliance with
provisions of the Electoral Act and Manual for Election Officers 2015.
But Wike, while addressing a mammoth crowd of his supporters and
party faithful who had gathered at the Port Harcourt International
Airport to welcome him on return from Abuja, on Saturday evening,
thanked the party leadership and its supporters for their
steadfastness, saying that by his training as a legal practitioner, he
would not criticise the opinion of the tribunal's judge.
"So, what I can say is that the tribunal has given their own verdict,
but we know that by the special grace of God, that is not the verdict
of God. Nobody can take your mandate.
"All the gang-ups in Abuja is against Rivers State. But we must
protect the interest of this state. If they like, let them use all the
powers they have, but their power cannot be superior than God's power.
"I want to urge you to be calm and be peaceful. I am still the
governor of Rivers State. Our lawyers are going on appeal; there is
also the Supreme Court. We believe that we have a good case.
"I have never seen where a lower court will overrule a superior court
like the Court of Appeal. In Lagos State, PDP went to court with our
governorship candidate and one of the grounds they went to court was
the issue of card reader.
"When the matter went to the Court of Appeal, the court said the
issue of card reader had no place in our Electoral Act. But today, I
have heard that the card reader is part of our Electoral Act, as far
as own election tribunal is concerned. Like I said, there is no cause
for alarm.
"Again, you are aware that Labour Party and the Social Democratic
Party were in the same tribunal. The same tribunal ruled that they did
not give 21 days notice to INEC and therefore, they are not qualified
to come to the tribunal.
"We also said that in the case of APC that they are not qualified to
be at the tribunal. The same tribunal said a different thing.
"When SDP and Labour Party went to the Court of Appeal, the court
upheld that the 21-day notice was mandatory. But as far as this
tribunal is concerned, they are not bothered about it. But like I
said, that is their own view.
"I don't want to say anything beyond that. They can say anything, but
Rivers people's interest must be protected. Nobody will intimidate me
to abandon this state. If they like, let them summon the justices as
they have been doing, but, one day, God's own judgment will prevail",
he said.
Also reacting, the state chapter of PDP alleged that members of the
tribunal were compromised in coming up with their verdict on the
disputed election, but however reassured Wike remained the state
governor.
Describing the judgment as travesty of justice and a rape on
democracy, the party chairman, Mr Felix Obuah, said the alleged
conspiracy and falsehood by the APC-led Federal Government against
Rivers people would amount to nullity at the end.
He alleged that the decision had been taken long before the written
addresses by both parties were adopted on Thursday and "said this is
one tribunal judgment that will never stand.
"There is no other reason why the tribunal hurriedly delivered the
contraption it called judgment in less than 24 hours after adopting
the written addresses on a matter that lasted over four months than to
pre-empt the judgment of the Supreme Court against the tribunal by
PDP, which comes up next week Tuesday.
"There is no problem; everybody should remain calm. As a matter of
fact, we are going to appeal. Things will be okay and you can see our
people are jubilating; nothing happened. That is man's judgment; God's
judgment is the final..
"In case of the matter getting up to the Supreme Court, we are ever
ready any day, any time. I have said it times without number that
Rivers State is a PDP state. Come rain, come shine, we are not
disturbed. But I am telling you that God's judgment will surpass
whatever they have done today (Saturday)", he said.
In his own reaction, special adviser to Governor Wike on media and
publicity, Sir Opunabo Inko-Tariah, said the verdict was a miscarriage
of justice, alleging that the tribunal panelists only acted according
to instruction.
"The tribunal has done its bit; the tribunal panelists have done what
they were asked to do. Definitely, Governor Wike will go on appeal and
I know that, at the end of the day, sagacity will prevail.
"I cannot comprehend the situation where you just rely on three
witnesses from APC and discard the testimonies of hundreds of people
from PDP. How do you reconcile that logic? That is why I said the
tribunal had done what it was asked to do", he said.
Reacting, however, chairman of the state chapter of APC, Dr Davies
Ikanya, said the party had been vindicated by the judgment, insisting
that the election the election that produced Wike as a governor was a
sham.
The party, in a statement, said, "we have been vindicated in our
persistent claim that the election in Rivers State was a sham and that
INEC erred in declaring Wike governor. We repeat that there is no way
under the heavens that Chief Wike can beat our candidate, Dr Dakuku
Peterside, in a free and fair election.
"Though, we were expecting total ban of Chief Wike from further
participating in the politics of Nigeria, seeing the orchestration of
the deaths of Rivers State people in order for him to be installed as
a caretaker governor.
"All the same, we thank the Justice Ambrusa- led tribunal for
restoring hope to the downtrodden people of Rivers State who have
borne the brunt of Wike's illegal and visionless administration in the
past five months.
Also reacting, the governorship candidate of the Labour Party in the
last April election, Prince Tonye Princewill, said there was no need
for Wike to appeal the verdict.
"I have just received the news of the cancellation of the Rivers
State Governorship election. Even as it may have come as a surprise to
many neutral observers, it was no surprise to me, my supporters and
many Rivers people who came out on that fateful day to try and cast
their vote.
Even PDP supporters, I'm sure in their heart of hearts, knew that this
day would come. Like I said to my supporters on that Election Day,
justice will prevail and the truth of this day will come out. If the
APC legal team could not prove that there was no election in Rivers
state, nobody could. It was that obvious", he said.
Rivers, Akwa Ibom judgments cannot stand –PDP
Responding to the judgment, however, the PDP rejected the tribunal's
judgment, describing it as "completely bizarre, unacceptable and part
of the script by the APC to manipulate the will of the people in the
country.
In a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja by its National
Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, PDP said that "indications to
this spurious judgment had months ago been hinted to the PDP, which in
turn, alerted the nation and the international community of the
heinous plot by the APC government to use the judiciary and various
security agencies to reverse the victory of the PDP in Rivers, Delta,
Akwa Ibom, Taraba and Abia states".
The statement reads: "We invite Nigerians and the international
community to recall various reprehensible steps taken by the APC
government that culminated in this ruling as well as the ridiculous
Wednesday's verdict of the Akwa Ibom State governorship election
tribunal, also sitting in Abuja".
"The curious and controversial relocation of the elections tribunals
from their states to Abuja without any justification, the constant
juggling of judicial officers and members of the governorship
elections tribunal in PDP states, especially, Rivers and Akwa Ibom
states, constant harassment of judicial and electoral officers
involved in the governorship election cases in these state, using
agencies of government, particularly the Directorate of State Services
(DSS) under the direct command of a known APC member, Alhaji Lawal
Daura and constant threats, intimidation and coercing of witnesses
against the PDP in the tribunals," were some of the basis on which the
PDP alleged the foul play by the ruling APC.
It further alluded to "the recent mass transfer of security
operatives, especially the DSS and police personnel that actually
participated in the conduct of the elections in Rivers and Akwa-Ibom,
ostensibly to frustrate the course of genuine evidences in the
process," noting that "the bias in the judgment against the PDP in
Rivers as well as Akwa-Ibom is evidenced in the contradictions
inherent in the trial process of the two cases and the verdicts
therein, whereby the tribunals clearly disregarded standing legal norm
that a petitioner must establish prove of claims".
...Tribunal ruling on Rivers guber poll petition, deadly blow to impunity —APC
However, the APC has described the judgment of the Rivers State
Governorship Election Petition Tribunal that overturned the election
of Wike as a deadly body blow to impunity and hooliganism.
The party said this in a statement issued in Lagos by its National
Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, pointing out that the
judgment had shown clearly that the era of impunity and hooliganism
was over, and that the only way for elections to have legitimacy was
for them to be free, fair and credible.
"What has come across from this judgment is that there is no shortcut
to free, fair and credible elections. This is part of the wind of
change that is blowing across the land and touching all arms of
government under the administration of President Buhari.
"Elections are about the expression of the will of the people, and
they must always be free to express themselves, irrespective of what
some desperate politicians may feel," the APC said.
The party further said politicians, especially those seeking or
occupying elective office, must realise that they could only derive
their legitimacy from the people, and that unless they respected the
wishes of the people, they would not go far.
The party hailed its governorship candidate in the state, Peterside,
for his doggedness and strong conviction in the pursuit of his
petition against the election of Wike that was not only marred by
widespread violence and electoral malfeasance, but also acknowledged
to be so by local and international observers - and now by the
judiciary.
Firstclassnewsline.net