Mediaboss Marketing

The All Progressives Congress candidate in the last conducted Senatorial bye-election in Niger East District, David Umaru has sued Dr. Shem Zabgayi of the Peoples Democratic Party and 388 others at the National Assembly Election Tribunal sitting in Minna.

The party is praying to be declared as the winner of the bye-election having polled majority votes as against the PDP candidate that was declared winner by INEC.

Umaru and his party in a petition to the tribunal made available to our correspondent pleaded the tribunal to cancel results from no fewer than 378 polling units in the nine local government areas of the bye-election for electoral malpractices and irregularities.

Others named as respondents in the petition included the PDP, INEC, the Resident Electoral Commissioner of INEC and all the presiding officers of the commission that participated in the conduct of the bye-election.

The petitioners are also seeking the order of the tribunal to cancel and deduct the votes scored by all parties in the affected polling units from the final results recorded by INEC to determine the rightful winner of the bye-election.

He said, That if the results of the polling units affected by these non-compliance and irregularities are cancelled and deducted from the total final scores of the candidates, I shall emerge with the highest number of valid Votes cast at the election.

That if the result of the above stated Polling Units that were affected by non-compliance are cancelled and deducted, I shall emerge with the highest number of valid votes cast thus; APC 87405-22491 = 64,914 PDP 92056-53837 = 38,219.

The PDP candidate according to results released by INEC got 92,056 while the APC candidate got 87,406 votes, but David Umaru is asking the tribunal to deduct 22,491 votes from APC results and 53,837 votes from that of PDP in determining the lawful winner of the senatorial bye-election.

The petitioners are also praying the tribunal to declare null and void INEC declaration of Dr. Zabgayi and his party as winner of the senatorial bye-election conducted on August 30 and September 6, 2014 because he did not secure majority of lawful votes and that he was not qualified to contest the election having not been properly sponsored by his party (PDP) in accordance with the Provisions of the Constitution.

According to the petitioners the scores ascribed to each of the candidates as were not the true reflection of the candidates actual scores, rather, the product of deliberate wrong entries and collation of figures made by the 3rd Respondents agents or officers at the polling units.

Go here to see the original:
Niger East poll: APC drags Zabgayi, 388 others to tribunal

The leadership of the All Progressives Congress has come under intense pressure from a section of the party supporters to revisit its much touted modified open primaries for the selection of its presidential candidate.

It was gathered in Abuja, on Sunday that some leaders of the party raised the issue during the partys National Executive Committee meeting on Friday.

A source within the party hierarchy confided in our correspondent that the attention of the leadership was drawn to a possible constitutional lacuna in the modified open primaries system adopted by the party.

The source said, They did not agree on a final modality but they agreed that there is no modified open primaries in the Constitution of the party.

The national working committee of the party was given prerogative to redefine the system around the indirect primaries so that it does not affect the constitution.

Read more:
APCs modified open primaries under threat

Members of the opposition. All Progressives Congress in the Senate on Friday clarified that their decision to vote against the approval of the $1bn loan request by President Goodluck Jonathan did not mean they were against the current war against insurgency in the country.

Members of the APC in the upper chamber had kicked against the approval of the loan to procure military hardware, though their counterparts in the Peoples Democratic Party supported it and their voice votes were upheld by Senate President David Mark during plenary on Thursday.

But speaking with our correspondent on the issue, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, (APC, Ekiti Central), said his colleagues were not opposed to endorsing the bid by Jonathan to raise money for the military to combat terrorism but that they were opposed to borrowing money for that purpose.

He also stated that the legislators were against the idea of seeking such approval through a letter of request, instead of bringing a supplementary appropriation bill, as recognised by law.

He said, The Constitution recognises laid-down rules for appropriation and since the procedure adopted by the Presidency contradicted the rules, we dont want to be part of constitution violators. Besides, we dont believe we should borrow money for that purpose.

Also, the leader of the opposition in the Senate, George Akume, said his colleagues voted against the loan approval because they wanted to be guided by the law of the country.

He said his colleagues were opposed to the approval to avoid constitutional breaches, which he said had been frequently recorded in the country for too long.

Akume said, If we want to borrow, let us follow what is stipulated in the Constitution so that we know where we are going. We have raised fundamental issues and the Senate must be guided by the provisions of the Constitution, as far as this matter is concerned

Also, Akume said the opposition party was not against obtaining a loan to fight insurgency, but that the proper process must be followed to get the loan.

He insisted that APC members had raised issues that touched on the Constitution, which superseded the Procurement Act used as defence by the PDP senators.

Read more from the original source:
Why we opposed Jonathans $1bn loan APC senators

What This SCOTUS Justice Just Said About Retiring Is Driving Progressives Up The Wall
What This SCOTUS Justice Just Said About Retiring Is Driving Progressives Up The Wall.

By: Othr5643

More here:
What This SCOTUS Justice Just Said About Retiring Is Driving Progressives Up The Wall - Video

Ekiti State Governor-elect, Ayo Fayose

The All Progressives Congress has called for the immediate arrest and prosecution of Ekiti State Governor-elect Ayodele Fayose for allegedly leading a band of thugs to beat up a Judge and then instigating his supporters to attack and burn down the opposition secretariat in the state.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Friday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed, the party said since Fayose did not yet enjoy any immunity from arrest and prosecution, he should immediately be arrested.

According to the party, every time a judge had been attacked anywhere in the world, the attackers have been jailed to serve as a deterrent to others who may want to take the laws into their hands.

The APC said it was necessary to act fast to prevent anarchists and crude individuals from taking the laws into their hands and tampering with the administration of justice, because the attack on Justice John Adeyeye came a few days after pro-Fayose and pro-PDP thugs invaded a court room in the state.

Even though Mr. Fayose has not assumed office, he has succeeded in taking Ekiti State back to Egypt within a few months of his election. Not only are Judges being attacked, the kind of killings and chaos that characterised his first time in charge of the state have already started. He is struggling hard to ensure that Ekiti is no longer in the league of states where disputes are settled in courts, instead of on the streets, and judges preside in the administration of justice, the statement read in part.

APC said while Ekiti State Police Commissioner Taiwo Lakanu did well to restore order after the judge had been beaten up, the overall role of the police in the two attacks was shameful.

According to published reports which have yet to be refuted, police personnel stood by while litigants, lawyers and other citizens were being mauled by rabid PDP thugs in the first attack, and again seemed powerless as Justice Adeyeye was being manhandled and his suit torn until the Police Commissioner arrived at the scene. If this is not an act of collusion, then it is a case of unacceptable gross incompetence for which those security agents must be brought to book, the party said.

If the police are no longer willing and able to carry out their constitutional duties of protecting the lives and property of the citizenry, then anarchy looms, the party warned.

It said Nigerians must brace for a hellish time in the hands of the PDP from now on till next years general elections, considering that the partys thugs are also alleged to have killed several people in Lagos recently after a PDP rally attended by President Jonathan.

Go here to see the original:
APC calls for Fayoses arrest, prosecution