Finally, the Akwa Ibom Elections Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja, on October 8, 2015 took the final addresses from the Petitioner, as well as the first, second, third & Fourth respondents.

Judgement day is now what we all await to see where the pendulum swings in this most dramatic, I wouldnt say intriguing, political tug-of-war between the All Progressives Congress, APC, candidate, Obong Umana Okon Umana and the incumbent governor, His Excellency, Mr Udom Gabriel Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Before going into the main issue I want to address herein, let me highlight a little drama that shocked me to my wits end same day. At the departure lounge of the Ibom International Airport, while patiently waiting to board the Abuja bound Arik Air flight, former Deputy Governor, His Excellency, Obong Nsima Ekere arrived with a retinue of aides and associates. I queued alongside others to pay my respect and courtesy.
To my consternation, Obong Ekere with fire in his eyes lynched my obeisance with his utterance. "Whenever you write that your rubbish, don't mention my name or I will come after you" he said. The hysteria and mental concussion of this unprovoked and unwarranted outburst on the countenance of all present was touchable.

I however kept my cool for it was too petty a matter to join issues. I considered myself a Liliputian to this great man and in reality, wasn't worth his irritation in the first place. Let me make some clarifications however. It is not a secret that I am a fan of Obong Nsima Ekere. Every follower of my inputs in social discourse, pre and post 2015 Guber race, knows, I have volumes on him, defending his integrity even when the powers that be were on his jugular and during his political travails. Let me put it on record that, he was never my benefactor, neither was I on his pay roll. I quite clearly know with a good conscience that, even when I believed in his bid for governor, I never negotiated a pay or was never on his pay ledger. I did so, because, as at then, I believed in his well articulated agenda.

When I had cause on grounds of superior arguments from my boss and benefactor, Prince Enobong Uwah to pitch tent with the Udom Is Right movement, I, out of respect, discussed this with him and gave my reason as total loyalty to Prince Uwah, who, at that point had taken an irrevocable stand to swim or sink with Mr Right.

That Obong Ekere as an experienced politician still finds this hard to reconcile with, as betrayed by his unkind rebuke is distressing. Howbeit, I will not, on account of his threat, lose my high esteem for his person and his sterling accomplishments in life. I can only say one thing. If he finds no qualms in turning against his party, the PDP and his benefactor, Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio, I should be given that fair chance, even in hell, to make choices without embittering anyone. Let me say without fear of contradiction: I AM NOT INTIMIDATED AND CANNOT BE COWED BY THREATS, SANS OFFENDING MY CONSCIENCE.

Folks,' I bothered to bring this up because of the needless angst, fury and politics of bitterness that runs a ring around this whole governorship battle. The APC/PDP gulf is so wide that, many have forgotten the old dictum that, THIS IS POLITICS AND NOTHING PERSONAL. IT IS A GAME OF INTERESTS. It is not a genocidal war and playing gangsterism with the election duel as I have observed is the height of desperation.

Now to Chief Wole Olanikpekun SAN, the Lead Counsel of the Petitioner. I giggled, as a wry smile sat on my eyebrow, reading the update of my brother and APC protagonist, Iboro Otongaran on the erudite Senior Advocate. I proceed to lift part of what, Otongaran (as also posted by Ita Awak, Inibehe Effiong and many other APC enthusiats) wrote in a piece mis-titled, "Olanipekun shames Udom’s Dundee United", stating, "Olanipekun was in the house at the FCT High Court, Maitama, to do what he does best, which is to shoot down applications, objections, arguments by the defence to Umana’s petition. Olanipekun’s resumption of his lead role has rubbed faeces on the faces of Udom Emmanuel’s assortment of cub reporters..."

I elect to stop my reference there because the rest, which I find repulsive and indecorous, are, his refrain to name-calling of the Essien Nduesos, Solomon Eyos, and in his words, "...the street gang of Emmanuel Nicholas (aka, White Bom Bom), Uwem Umanah, one Ace, Essien Essien, etc, all of who, he describes with unpalatable terms. All the bile, simply because, they are doing for the respondent, what he(Otongaran) and others in his camp are miserably doing for the petitioner.

Well! Without holding brief for these fortunate lot, who he labelled, "Udom Emmanuel’s assortment of cub reporters...", I make bold to make one fact clear. The indiscriminate taunting of opponents with injurious oration, will ultimately, do nothing, to help Olanikpekun. The gusto with which phyrric victories of winning motions, objections or pleas are celebrated, which in the end game, are immaterial to the substance of the case is what I find nauseating.

Wole Olanikpekun is for me, a very good lawyer saddled with a very bad case. Truth is, the best specialist doctors are said to be Cubans, Indians or Germans. But, just as the best consultant cardiologist will find his skill useless for a corpse in the morgue who died of cardiac arrest, so is a very astute lawyer incapacitated when handling a very bad case. This is Olanikpekun's dilemma, inspite of all the platitudes my brother in Lagos Otongaran will allot to him.

I rest my arguments on the inherent inconsistencies of the petitioners original narrative that, there was no election in Akwa Ibom State. By the final addresses, the following contradictory points conflate into an incontrovertible text: that indeed, there was an election. So what are these irreconcilable postulates by the petitioners as I juxtapose

1.That there was no election in Akwa Ibom State.
Question: So why were they relying on figures of the card readers which proves there was election as tendered in their exhibit?

2. That the petitioner says the 1st respondent did not score the highest number of valid votes.
Question: So why the earlier assertion that there was no election, when you thereafter turnaround to merely disagree with the ascribal of the highest votes cast in the said election?

3. The Petitioner alleged there was no election in Akwa Ibom state.
Question: How come the case was narrowed to submitting that, elections did not take place in 19 Local Government Areas midstream?

There are many other issues, but since the Tribunal has forbidden itself from considering technicalities, I leave them out for the learned team of Justices A.S. Umar, K.O. Dawodu and P.T. Kwahar, to fix and sort out.

But I won't rest this case without asking Chief Olanipekun, why the initial hype of the so-called Forensic Experts became embalmed at the boiling point.

That for me is the anti-climax. Was it a case of self admission that, the forensic report was a scam for which those fraudsters should be charged for perjury and obtaining fees under false pretence? Can I safely assume that, the tender of the forensic report was certified dead on arrival after the counsel to the first and second respondents tore to shreds the speculative adventure of the forensic undertakers?

In summary, I will however not wager a guess on the fate of this petition, but suffice to say as my learned friend would, res ipsa loquitor(THE FACT SPEAKS FOR ITSELF). COURRRRRRRRRT!!!!!

By Osondu Ahirika, Abuja