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Wike, PDP Govs Celebrate Udom’s Victory …Congratulates Ishaku On Victory
Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike on Wednesday joined other PDP Governors to celebrate the Supreme Court victory of the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel at Uyo.
The event was the Thanksgiving Service held in honour of Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State.
The governor, who was accompanied to Uyo by the Speaker, Rivers State House of Assembly, Mr Dabo Adams, Rivers State PDP Chairman, Bro Felix Obuah and PDP chieftain, Chief Sergeant Awuse took time to interact with the people of the Niger Delta who celebrated him as he moved the state.
Governor Wike, a firm believer in the defence of the heritage of the Niger Delta assured that the interest of the geo-political zone will always be his priority.
Other governors who attended the thanksgiving service include: Governors Ayo Fayose of Ekiti State, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State.
It would be recalled that Governor Wike’s victory at the Supreme Court on January 27, 2016 opened the floodgates of victories for other PDP Governors across the country.
Meanwhile, Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has congratulated the Governor of Taraba State, Darius Ishaku on the affirmation of his election by the Supreme Court, saying that the rule of law has come to stay in the democratic process of the country.
In a statement issued yesterday by Special Assistant to the Rivers State Governor on Electronic Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, Governor Wike also congratulated the good people of Taraba State whose preference for the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), has been affirmed by the Supreme Court.
Governor Wike stated that the judgement of the Apex Court has further strengthened the nation’s democracy and enhanced the confidence of the people in the judiciary.
He noted that the rule of law has been consolidated by the judgments of the Supreme Court on the appeals that it adjudicated upon.
He said that with the Supreme Court’s judgment, the votes cast by the people of Taraba State for Governor Darius Ishaku have been upheld.
The governor urged the Taraba State governor to consolidate on his numerous achievements and also extend a hand of cooperation to his opponents for the greater good of the people of the state.
In a related development, the Supreme Court upheld the election of Darius Ishaku as the Governor of Taraba State, affirming an earlier decision of the Court of Appeal, yesterday.
The court dismissed an appeal by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Aisha Alhassan, saying it lacked merit.
The reason for the judgement is to be given on February 22, the Supreme Court said.
“I am firmly of the view that there is no merit in this appeal. It is hereby refused,” said Justice Bodeh-Rhode Vivore, who read the lead judgement of a seven-member panel. “The judgement of the Court of Appeal is affirmed and the return of the first respondent as the Governor of Taraba State is affirmed.”
Mrs. Alhassan had approached the highest court through with four applications to challenge the decision of the Appeal Court, which nullified the victory given her by the Taraba State Election Tribunal.
A five-member panel of the Appeal Court in Abuja had on December 31 nullified the ruling of the Taraba State Election Tribunal on November 7, which declared Mrs. Alhassan winner of the April 11 election of the state.
The tribunal ruled that the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr. Ishaku, was not nominated by his party, and therefore not qualified for the said election.
The counsel to the APC and its candidate, Abiodun Owonikoko, told the Supreme Court yesterday that the reason for the judgement of the tribunal, was that the important determinant for the sponsorship of a candidate for election, under the Nigerian Constitution, remained the conduct of a primaries by the sponsoring party.
“What is decisive of this appeal is the sponsorship as a ground to qualify for contesting in an election, by the constitution,” said Mr. Owonikoko.
Citing the previous judgements of the Supreme Court in the case against, Benue State’s Tarsus and Ortom, which was held on January 15, and another judgement regarding the case of Zamfara State’s Yari and Shinkafi, Mr. Owonikoko said the applicants in the aforementioned appeals founded their application on an alleged lack of conduct of primaries, by the respondents.
He further said that their argument was that no primaries was conducted at all by the PDP, which would have resulted in the emergence of Mr. Ishaku as its candidate.
But counsel to Mr. Ishaku, Kanu Agabi, said the Appeal Court had in its ruling stated that the APC and its candidate were bound by their pleas.
He said the appellants had admitted in the third paragraphs of their applications that Mr. Ishaku was a member of the PDP and a candidate of the party in the April 11 elections of the state.
“The second respondent is a duly registered party and ‘sponsored’ by the first respondent,” he stated, citing a quote from the appellant’s brief.
Mr. Agabi further said the appellants repeatedly fielded the first respondent as being sponsored by the PDP.
He further told the court that they had presented 51 witnesses before the tribunal, who were not reviewed.
Also in his address, counsel to the PDP, Solo Ahmed, said the party had never denied sponsoring Mr. Ishaku.
He said the appellants had submitted that there was no primary election, but went ahead to state that it (the primaries) was conducted in Abuja.
He further told the court that the previous judgements cited by Mr. Owonikoko had indicated that issues relating to the conduct of primaries in an election were pre-election matters that could only be contested by members of the party in question, or by INEC.
The counsel to INEC, Joseph Daudu, reiterated the point made by Mr. Ahmed, regarding the position of the APC on the conduct of primaries by the PDP.
According to Mr. Daudu, the APC’s claim that there was no primary election was premised on the contention that the primaries was conducted in Abuja.
The Rivers State Chief judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi has granted pardon to six inmates standing awaiting trial at the Port Harcourt maximum correctional center.
The six lucky inmates granted pardon on Tuesday by the state Chief Judge included Nwekeala Chizoba, Samuel Emmanuel, Aniete Kelvin, Ebube Fubara and Goddey Okpara who were on awaiting trial as murder suspects and have all spent between 10 years to seven years in the custody without a proper information filed against them in the court.
Justice Amadi during a special gaol delivery exercise last Tuesday at the Port Harcourt Maximum Correctional Centre opined that the special gaol delivery was part of activities lined up to commomerate the 2024/2025 legal year in the State and restated the commitment of the state judiciary in decongesting the correctional centre and ensuring that those inmates who are not supposed to be there are removed from the custody.
The state chief judge stressed the need for all stakeholders to work together to build a society that supports rehabilitation and gives a second chance to anyone or group of people who have fallen short of the expectation of the law and have been punished accordingly.
He stressed that the National Judicial Council(NJC) encourages judges to pay more attention to criminal matters to enable them to decongests the correctional facilities, noting that since his assumption into office, his administration has been able to reduce the number of inmates in Nigerian Correctional Centres and the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre in particular, to less than 2,000 as against the over 4,000 inmates previously in the faculty.
According to him, “as they release the deserving inmates, they affirm their commitment to justice, compassion and rule of law but that they must not forget the fundamental principles of justice delivery system which is truth and fairness, integrity and equality before the law.”
I encourage you all the released inmates to return to your families and become better citizens. You must not engage in action that will return you all back to prison. Let me say that while the judges show empathy to you all, it does not absolved individuals from being held accountable for actions against individuals, corporate organisations and state which the law frowns at, ”he stated
The Chief Judge thereafter stood down the exercise to enable the DPP to intervene to case files following the fact that majority of the persons listed to benefit from the exercise are facing murder charges and adjourned to a date that will come before December.
Earlier in his goodwill message, the outgoing state Comptroller of Nigerian Correctional Centre, Port Harcourt, Felix Lawrence, who was recently promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General, commended the state judiciary led by Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi for their continuous effort aimed at ensuring justice and decongesting the facilities.
Other activities lined up for the event included special church service at St Paul’s Cathedral , Anglican Communion, Rebisi Port Harcourt, inspection of guard of honour by the state Chief Judge mounted by officers of the Nigerian police and a special court session held at the ceremonial court hall.
By: AkujobiAmadi
The Director General of Rivers State Bureau on Public Procurement (RBoPP), Dr. Ine Briggs, has explained that the Sir Siminalayi Fubara administration plans to enforce transparency in governance through public procurement.
Speaking at a one-day Public Procurement Enlightenment workshop organised in collaboration with the State Local Government Service Commission for newly elected chairmen, vice chairmen, secretaries and leaders of legislative assemblies, Dr. Briggs said it is key for grassroot development.
She stated that the Sir. Fubara administration plans to reduce wastage and at same time infuse efficiency in public expenditure.
The RSoPP DG said the local government political office holders remain key drivers in the new vision hence the workshop is to arm them with knowledge on how to execute projects in tandem with needs of the people.
“ Your role in the prudent management of public resources is, therefore, not just administrative it’s the cornerstone of delivering the dividends of democracy. Every procurement decision you make must reflect a commitment to fairness, transparency and accountability” Dr. Briggs submitted.
One of the key goals of the administration she further reminded the participants was to use their offices to foster economic growth through public procurement.
She warned that the law establishing the agency empowers it to penalise defaulters, but that what is more important is voluntary compliance to the laws.
In addition to that, she said urged the local government council leaders that champion the practice and implementation of public procurement law.
On his part, Acting Chairman of Local Government Service Commission, Pastor GoodLife Ben Iduoku averred that the aim of the workshop is to arm key stakeholders in the local government system to generate new ideas, innovation and strategies in tandem with government policies and programmes.
The workshop dealt on various topics on procurement planning, methods, Understanding Bid Process, including types of Construction Contracts and law.
Some participants were awarded excellence and meritorious awards as part of the programme.
By: Kevin Nengia
The 19th anniversary of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Rivers State Chapter, recently ended in Port Harcourt in grand style, with participants from various schools including proprietors, the academia, civil society groups and top government functionaries charting the way forward for educational improvement.
The 19th NAPPS anniversary christened, ‘Innovation and Adaptation: Transforming Challenges Into Opportunities’ was held at Casoni Hotels, Port Harcourt.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Rivers State Chapter of the association, Dr. Jaja Adafe Sunday expressed gratitude to the members and executives for their untiring efforts towards the achievements of the body.
He sought the intervention of government on the lingering crisis on the economy as it is affecting the running of schools.
He decried high cost of things including fuel and raw materials which has adversely affected the running of schools and payment of teachers.
Dr. Sunday hinted that the current economic situation in the nation is biting hard on the operations of schools, saying inflation, removal of fuel subsidy, fuel scarcity, poor electricity supply, tariffs and lack of government grants are some of the challenges faced by schools, and urged the members to brace up to the challenges, as it is the panacea to building a brighter future.
Guest speakers from the health sector and the academia thrilled the gathering on the essence of basic education which they said is the key to national development.
Former Dean of the Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Professor Azuru and the Chief Medical Director of Meridian Hospitals, Dr. Odo Iyke were some notable guest speakers who delivered lectures at the occasion.
Some distinguished proprietors also got special recognitions and awards.
The 19th anniversary cake was cut by the Rivers State NAPPS Chairman with representatives of the state government assisting.
