Babatunji Wusu –
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chapter in Nasarawa State has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court to examine the ruling of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which affirmed Governor Abdullahi Sule’s victory in the 2023 governorship race.
At first, David Ombugadu of the PDP was proclaimed the winner after Sule’s victory was overturned by the state election petitions tribunal.
Sule’s legitimacy as governor was eventually confirmed by the appellate court, which found that the tribunal had erred in its vote re-computation and declaration.
Stella Oboshi, the PDP’s women’s leader in Nasarawa, voiced her worries over the appellate court’s ruling during a nonviolent demonstration in Lafia.
She emphasized the value of democracy in Nigeria and contended that the ruling went against democratic values. She also asked the Supreme Court to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the matter.
She also suggested that there was a lack of openness in the Independent National Electoral Commission’s first announcement of Sule as the elected governor.
“We want to draw attention to particular cases of irregularities that the court disregarded under the pretext of technicalities,” Oboshi stated. For example, in the Lafia Local Government Area’s Gayam ward, 13,000 voters were officially registered, yet the APC received an astounding 33,000 votes in total.
Similarly, INEC reported that 59,000 votes went to the APC alone in the Chiroma ward, despite the fact that 21,000 voters were officially registered to vote there.
“We sincerely think that in every decision it makes, our court has an obligation to respect the values of justice, fairness, and merit. It is against these standards in this specific instance that there hasn’t been a comprehensive inquiry into the obvious discrepancies. That erodes public confidence in our legal system.
Therefore, it is crucial that the judiciary, which is a cornerstone of democracy, avoid unintentionally giving those who commit electoral injustice a forum.
Oboshi also voiced his disgust over the excessive brutality that state security officials inflicted on a few of the party’s female supporters on Monday.
As a result, she reiterated that the party’s followers had conducted their protests peacefully and asked the security services to stop harassing them.
“We have been peacefully protesting for more than six months now, since INEC declared Governor Abdullahi Sule the victor of the state’s governorship election on March 18,” the woman stated. Nothing has ever been destroyed, and we have never broken any laws in the nation.
“We want justice to prevail because we feel that the candidate we voted for was not the one that INEC announced, but to our utter dismay, security forces attacked some of our ladies on Monday for participating in a nonviolent demonstration. Hospital care is currently being given to those who were hurt.
Tight Security for Tinubu’s 2024 Budget Presentation at the National Assembly
There is tight security at the National Assembly Complex prior to President Bola Tinubu presenting the 2024 Appropriations Bill to a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives.
The 2024 budget presentation will take place by 11 a.m. in the Green Chamber of the National Assembly.
It was observed that more armed police personnel had been sent to the National Assembly Annex gate, villa gate, and main (MOPOL) gate of the complex.
It was found that the usual hubbub and restrictions on parking and pedestrian movement associated with the National Assembly were absent, making it impossible for anyone who did not have an accreditation to pass.
