COPIED.

THE IMO GUBERNATORIAL JUDGMENT - A PAINFUL BUT LEGALLY CORRECT VERDICT!

It is indeed a perplexing paradox: Hope Uzodinma may not have won the 2019 Imo State gubernatorial election, yet the Supreme Court, on the facts, was right in declaring him the winner of that election in law. The error was not the Supreme Court's, but that of Governor Emeka Ihedioha's legal team; and it was a crucially fatal error.

What happened was this: apparently concocted results, perhaps not having any basis whatsoever in reality, BUT SIGNED BY INEC PRESIDING OFFICERS, were turned in from more than 350 polling units, giving Hope Uzodinma of the APC an incredibly unassailable lead. When those results were transmitted to the wards collation centres, the collation officers, who had no power in law to cancel or reject them, rejected the said polling units results, and refused to collate them, thereby effectively excluding them from the total tally of the governorship result that was eventually declared by the Returning Officer.

The exclusion of the results of those polling units was the fulcrum of the petition presented at the Tribunal by Hope Uzodinma. Ever since David Mark V. ABUBAKAR USMAN, and DOMA V. INEC, the law has been settled that neither collation officers nor a returning officer, has the power in law to exclude a polling unit result duly signed by the presiding officer at the polling unit; only the election tribunal possesses the power to cancel or exclude such a result. So, at the point of its presentation, Senator Uzodinma's petition was potentially viable, in spite of the apparent dubiousness of the polling units results on which it was anchored, there being a REBUTTABLE presumption of regularity and correctness, by virtue of both the Electoral Act and Evidence Act, enuring in favour of any result declared by a presiding officer.

The backbreaking and fatal error made by Ihedioha's legal team was in not filing a CROSS PETITION fiercely challenging the integrity of the suspect polling units results upon which Uzodinma was relying, and praying the election tribunal to formally nullify the said results. Without a cross petition, none of the grounds under section 138 (1) of the Electoral Act for questioning the elections conducted in those polling units in which Uzodinma "won" could have been competently raised by Governor Ihedioha in his defence to Uzodinma's petition. This was the ratio decidendi of the old Court of Appeal decision in IDRIS V. A.N.P.P.(2008)8 NWLR(PT.1088) Page 1. In the recent Court of Appeal decision in ATIKU ABUBAKAR V. BUHARI, the Court of Appeal again invoked the principle in dismissing Buhari's contention that Atiku ABUBAKAR was born in Cameroun to parents who originally were Camerounians, and thus disqualified from contesting the election. Dismissing the contention, the Court of Appeal held that the issue was incompetent, since Buhari did not file a cross petition.

Ihedioha indeed did set up facts in his Reply to the petition rehashing the serial infractions that led to the exclusion of the results of the said 300 plus polling units. But that was legally not enough, in the absence of a cross petition. Besides, such renditions by a Respondent in a mere Reply or Statement of Defence are clearly incompetent. The reason for the incompetence was was made clear by the Court of Appeal in NATIONAL JUDICIAL COUNCIL & ORS V. HON. JUSTICE JUBRIL BABAJIDE ALADEJANA & ORS(2014) LPELR - 2413 (CA) Page 31, paras C - F, at ratio 3 thus -

"The law is that it is a plaintiff who by his statement of claim primarily nominates issues to be tried in a suit and which he relies on to have the judgment of the Court. For a defendant, it is only necessary to resist the plaintiff's claim on the facts pleaded. It is not for a defendant to set up facts which would convey that it is not just setting up a defence but setting up a new case of his own. He can only do so by way of a counter claim..."

Shorn of the legalese, what the above authority is simply saying is that since the issue nominated for trial by Hope Uzodinma was the unlawfulfulness or otherwise of the exclusion of the results of the 300 plus polling units by the ward collation officers, Ihedioha's defence was therefore necessarily restricted by law to showing that those who excluded the results had the power in law to exclude them. Without a cross petition praying for the nullification of those results, the law forbade Governor Ihedioha as respondent from raising the issue of the alleged serial corrupt practices and irregularities marring the said results, in a mere statement of defence; that was a new issue not nominated by Uzodinma as petitioner. Ihedioha, being a Respondent, could only have competently raised them via a cross petition, being a new issue not nominated by Uzodinma, the petitioner.

Tragically, Ihedioha's legal team forgot to include the pivotal cross petition. And in the absence of a cross petition, the Supreme Court was right in law, painfully though it may seem, to rely on the presumption of regularity and correctness enshrined by both the Electoral Act and Evidence Act in favour of the said results, and to reckon with them and add them up to the final result, since Ihedioha's legal team had woefully failed to effectively attack the results and rebut that presumption. For the Supreme Court, this was the legally correct conclusion to come to, having found that INEC had no power in law to exclude polling units results duly affirmed by the various polling units presiding officers!

Una never see anything.

That is not what is used to determine the winner in the supreme court.

it is even a good development as that will help the New Gov to sit tight since he does not av the assembly in his favour.

That was what helped Segun Oni in Ekiti state in 2007 when he had 13/13 house of assembly members.

if u want ur Gov to perform, dont vote for their party members into the house of assembly.

I just love her named Nigeria, every political news is extremely funny......

tooth4tooth:


But you read the part where they said the result 388 polling units were cancelled.They are Apc stronghold as we were made to understand.

The cancellation of those polling units was a dirty politics.

Awarding all the results of the affected units to only one candidate too is a dirty politics.

They didn't award to one person. They gave each parties their votes and mind you other parties were not that affected. It was APC strong hold.

RuudVanNisteroy:
Imo state House of Assembly composition:
PDP = 13 members
AA = 6 members
APGA = 6 members
APC = Zero

Supreme Court said APC won. What kind of species are imo people. They "massively" voted for APC in Guber election, but voted other parties in House of Assembly elections that took place same day.

Come and see America Wonder!



https://www.google.com/amp/s/innonews.com.ng/2019/03/incoming-imo-assembly-apc-have-no-single-memberpdp-produce-majority/amp/

But to be very honest, there was no way PDP would have won OruEast assembly seat if there was no hankypanky here and there.

GamalNasser:
Buhari is the devil

He has always been.
Those who packaged him, Sowore & Falana inclusive, are biting their fingers in deep regret privately even if they continue to put up a brave face for their stewpidity in public.


www.nairaland.com/attachments/2091052_2084712obama4jpeg0846bececdee51cd258847b713b916e6_jpegd27f893bccf38657d36ce7d37daaa943


www.nairaland.com/attachments/2026526_image_jpeg9f360c5ab7736510df54c882e9dbf188

Buhari is end time president by the time he finishes with us we understand what that name buhari really means

I was in Owerri during election, Hope Uzodinmma did not do campaign, he did not win,
I don't know where they got those figures from,


Apc did not win any where,

Okoroawusa:
APC was rigged out in that election. If someone told you that it was possible for APC not to have even one house of assembly member in a state that they had ruled for 8 years u will believe?


It was even made worse by the in- fighting of APC (Okorocha,Oshiomohle,Uzodinma,Izunaso n other).


Now Imo has HOPE!

. My brother it is possible for apc not to have won any seat, most of their so called strong holds voted for uche Nwosu, so let's assume most of the AA votes actually belong to apc, that means hope as a candidate lacked what it takes to sway voters to apc, how did he then suddenly ganner more than 200k votes to overtake Ihedioha, meanwhile we have still not been told how many valid votes he now has, to warrant giving him judgment. This country has been given to the dogs

Okoroawusa:
APC was rigged out in that election. If someone told you that it was possible for APC not to have even one house of assembly member in a state that they had ruled for 8 years u will believe?

Like it happened to PDP Kwara State?

Buhari is playing god of Anubis..

APC is playing demons from hell..

Imam Tanko Mohammed is playing marine spirit

They'll soon Start decamping

WorldRichest:


Rape of justice? Well, not bad as long as it's not rape of any girl or woman. Now, what did you call it when the same Supreme Court sacked all elected politicians in Zamfara and gave their seats to the useless losers? Was that marriage of democrazy?

shut up ur stinking mouth APC didn't conduct primary election in zamfara and rivers state, but evil buhari used his devilished influence to imposed somebody on inec as APC candidate in zamfara state

He decamped

Obere4u:
ApC have 1 from Ehime Mbano

RuudVanNisteroy:
Imo state House of Assembly composition:
PDP = 13 members
AA = 6 members
APGA = 6 members
APC = Zero

Supreme Court said APC won. What kind of species are imo people. They "massively" voted for APC in Guber election, but voted other parties in House of Assembly elections that took place same day.

Come and see America Wonder!



https://www.google.com/amp/s/innonews.com.ng/2019/03/incoming-imo-assembly-apc-have-no-single-memberpdp-produce-majority/amp/

Stop wailing and move on!

Who are you asking the question now.

RuudVanNisteroy:

Modern day Pharoah and personification of evil.

Lol....when PDP dey teach APC una dey support, now student don sabi pass teacher una dey cry!!..I pity all of una wey dey support politicians.

tooth4tooth:


But you read the part where they said the result 388 polling units were cancelled.They are Apc stronghold as we were made to understand.

The cancellation of those polling units was a dirty politics.

Awarding all the results of the affected units to only one candidate too is a dirty politics.

Don't be stupid

APC is in govt and control all security apparatus and when arguably inec

PDP is the opposition
How will pdp be able to cancel 388 polling units state wide?

No wonder these foolish political elite think we stupid
Because in reality, most of you are actually stupid

Rubbish

RuudVanNisteroy:
Imo state House of Assembly composition:
PDP = 13 members
AA = 6 members
APGA = 6 members
APC = Zero

Supreme Court said APC won. What kind of species are imo people. They "massively" voted for APC in Guber election, but voted other parties in House of Assembly elections that took place same day.

Come and see America Wonder!



https://www.google.com/amp/s/innonews.com.ng/2019/03/incoming-imo-assembly-apc-have-no-single-memberpdp-produce-majority/amp/

Why are we like this? so power resides in the state house members now?, no longer with the people that voted at local govt levels again - una Sabi book reach point where una thinking makes even a fool seem wise

All local govt chairmen are APC candidates so how do you expect APC not to win at the lower level?

perez100:
Some Nigerians supporting this verdict will one day turn to perpetual wailers while those of us that wail today will rise in judgement against them.

I will never be a wailer nor a zombie. I will always shout if I see anything wrong irrespective of who is involved. This is a rape to democracy. This govt is evil

It’s quite obvious the judgement is a fraud.

perez100:
Some Nigerians supporting this verdict will one day turn to perpetual wailers while those of us that wail today will rise in judgement against them.

Guess u were not on NL yesterday
They were screaming southern unity after amowateva was declared illegal
Time always takes it's.....time
Meanwhile where is metaphysical
Cc immhotep GMBuharii Afamed

prekumohtim:
The new governor should be impeached immediately he's sworn in . The house of assembly members just need to need to work together. But I doubt cos everybody wants to be on the governor's side because of monetary benefits. So most of them will rather defect to APC

you can't impeach someone with no proof of crime

coolcharm:
Mehn... This supreme court, No wonder they were after the head of Onogehn.

This is rape of justice and common sense.

even ongehn knws dat he is due,wetin b ur own,m sure f its pdp dat won,u wil say anoda tin,guy look front,u hv goten d numbers of lik dat u want,oya convert am to money and use it to buy food, ode oshi

olajide8:



Why are we like this? so power resides in the state house members now?, no longer with the people that voted at local govt levels again - una Sabi book reach point where una thinking makes even a fool seem wise

All local govt chairmen are APC candidates so how do you expect APC not to win at the lower level?

pls which LGA chairmen are u talking about. Don't come here to lie pls

And so what?

PicLtd:
Now that's another bizzarre one.

he can still remove