₦airaland Forum

nothing will shock Nigerians than to realise that the APC guber candidiate is in Efcc with the former governor where he was secretary for 7 years.a replacement is obvious.

All roads leads to Justice Evoh Chukwu federal high court 8 seating at Maitama, Abuja tomorrow.
the many issues being sought for determination include and are not limited to ;
1. Umana was not a registered member of the party APC as at the day he bought his form to contest, he did not register in his ward and had not gotten a waiver, having decamped less than one week sinced he was battling with the pdp in court having being the first person to purchase its forms.
2. He did not get a ratification of the party state working committee or Caucus to be eligible to have emerged concensus candidiate a requirement of the party constitution.
3. He was still active in a court case against the PDP in the federal high court, abuja presided over by the Hon. Justice F.A. Ademola of which he got an interim injunction on 7th and extended injuction on the 24th november to restrain the peoples democratic party (pdp) from excluding or in any way or manner preventing him mr umana okon umana –the plaintiff from participating in the governorship primaries of the party in akwa ibom state slated for the 29th november, 2014.note he decamped on the 28th and had not exhausted what he sought the courts for.
4. The APC party guidelines were not followed in whatever contraption produced him as flagbearer of apc and was seriously involved in acts of violence,considering the fact that the delegates list was completed months before he defected into the party,he needed to assure himself of delegates in this manner by inflicting injuries to many genuine delegates queuing for accreditation. The security report on the primaries attest to these facts.
The election committee report submitted by Ezenwa Joe Ikwuaju remonstrated against these illegalities and desperation and the APC primaries appeal panel reports set up and also tendered to the courts have said so also
5.The APC primaries which produced him was A CHARADE elections was conducted by House of Assembly candidates who are Umana Umana supporters,including house member representing abak and nsit atai, kokoette effiong abia and Mr john Harry
There was no party primaries conducted,as adhered to by the national party legal teams and party guidelines. Section 14 of the guidelines says accreditation shall be done btw the hours of 8am to 12 noon and any delegate aspirant or agent who arrives after commencement shall not be allowed to vote,umana claims an unknown electoral process called option A4 produced him as candidiate ,section 14f says members shall vote by secret ballot at the state capital and the non delegates head count was a serious infraction of the guidelines no matter how well advised
These are some of the mute and aphasiac points which the Court will have to disencumber, unsnarl and straighten out
We elected to go for best practices when we were rearing the party and not import the lies and impunity features of the PDP we must correct them,the state must be given an alternative not desperados from the pdp ,akwa ibom must have a clear choice for their expected change agenda as there is no difference btw umana, akpabio and udom.
the judiciary remains the only public institution that is mandated to provide essential checks on other public institutions. a fair and efficient judiciary is the key to ending electoral malfeasance, corruption, impunity and absurdity

Did you at anytime go to Senator Akpanudoedehe to tell him about your ambition in 2011?
Why should I? I have no reason to. I haven't seen him. He doesn't call me. After his removal as minister, he stopped calling us. I don't even have the opportunity to get to him, so how could I have discussed that with him. We all have our disappointments, but you don't continue to put the fact of your personal disappointment on the heads of imaginary enemies. It doesn't make sense. You see, my friend is paranoid. That is why I won't stop praying for him. He is paranoid about enemies. If he wants to be governor, it is his right. But he must come out to convince the people of Akwa Ibom that he has something to offer that is better than (what) the incumbent governor (is offering). It will not be through blackmail or the attempt to distort facts and introduce ethnic politics and cause division in the state. That would be unacceptable.
People are surprised that this present administration in Akwa Ibom has a problem with the former governor, Attah, because this is more like an offshoot of his administration.
I don't see any fundamental problem. If there were problems, you can see the simplest way the current administration has carried on with inherited projects. That is an indication that, fundamentally speaking, there is no problem. But disagreements are expected. You cannot have a situation whereby there can be no disagreements whatsoever. They are expected in politics.
You don't seem to accommodate suggestion.
We certainly do.
How come there was disagreement when Attah made some suggestions on the establishment of the Tropicana project?
He expressed his views. You had all kinds of people entering the fray to respond not really on behalf of government. A lot of people who responded were not speaking for government. But you know on Tropicana project, he expressed his concerns about the size of land available for the project. Government came out to make a clarification that we had 82 hectares and that we have more than enough land and the concerns about parking space should not arise. We also addressed the issue he raised about environmental impact assessment (EIA); we assured that a feasibility study was done before we embarked on the project. The other emotional reactions were done by other people; not government. So you cannot say that we don't accommodate suggestions or disagreements. But you know that sometimes, people can react on the basis of incomplete information. So in that case, as a government, what we did was to provide the information.
You served a commissioner in the Finance Ministry under Attah, and today you are the SSG, can you assess the two administrations.
I think it is an unfair question. Let the outsiders assess us.
Outsiders know very little. You are an insider.
Well, outsiders should get the facts. In any case, it is not a contest where a man who is there today will be acting just so that people can say he out-performed his predecessor; that is not the issue. Akpabio had his programmes from day one; he presented those programmes to the people of Akwa Ibom State and he has been faithful in the implementation of those programmes; so how would the people of Akwa Ibom assess him in another six years from now? We leave that to posterity. It is not for a participant like me to make the assessment. I am too modest to make the assessment.
Are you pretending to be calm because people say you could be combative and tempestuous?
I can say one thing: I know that I am principled. I have the fear of God in whatever I do, and when I am committed to a cause or I hold a position, I put in my all. Just because I am principled, and I stand by what is right, and I tell the truth at all times, I know I am likely to displease a lot of people. I ensure that what is right for the generality of our people gets done. If we are committing resources to improve the quality of lives of the generality of our people, and a few persons who feel that maybe those resources should be diverted for the benefit of just a handful of people are displeased, then I think it is better to serve the generality of the people because that way, we are also rendering service to God.
Why are you so confident about Akpabio?
By all the benchmarks, he has done well. You know when he came on board, people thought we were going to have all kinds of ethnic frictions, but he came and through the appointments he made, he gave every section of the state a sense of belonging. I am Ibibio and I can say that since the democratic dispensation, this is the first time you are having the SSG outside the immediate domain of the incumbent governor. So, he has broken new grounds for the benefit of Akwa Ibom State. Merit has been the issue; it does not matter where you come from, and the same thing has been done in the distribution of amenities and projects. So when you find some of these people who want to play the ethnic card and talk about marginalisation of Ibibio, I know they are not talking about Akpabio; they must be talking about some other governor.
Is it just because the appointment favours you personally?
No, because even in terms of appointments of Personal Assistants (PAs) and Special Assistants (SAs), about 75 per cent are Ibibio, even his personal physician. This shows you a man who is exposed, detribalised and has broken all the old ethnic barriers. So, for me, he is the leader Akwa Ibom needs today. By the power of his example, he is taking Akwa Ibom to that new level where when anybody comes out to aspire for office, people would look at his credentials, his background, antecedents and would judge him by the strength of his character, by the strength of his experience, by the strength of his ideas.

Culled from the Sunday independent,july19,2009
http://www.independentngonline.com/poli/lead/article01

Excerpts...

How is Akwa Ibom?
In my opinion, I think Akwa Ibom is working. We are meeting our targets and objectives under the administration of Governor (Godswill) Akpabio. The people are excited because what we have been able to accomplish over the last two years is quite evident. If you come into the state, you can see for yourself that the state is being transformed in a very dramatic way. You can see that we have committed a lot of funds - over N200 billion - to the rehabilitation and construction of roads and (other) infrastructure. These projects are real and they are projects that impact directly on the lives of the people because if you rehabilitate a school, upgrade a health centre, provide electricity, potable water; these are basic needs that impact directly on the lives of the people. The approach to development has been holistic; not just roads that you find when you come in. We have massively invested in state and federal roads. I want to say our approach has been total development of the whole state.
How do you approach development?
Our units of development have been the wards. We have 329 wards. As I speak today, in every ward, you have at least 20 on-going projects. Every ward has the benefit of, at least, a minimum of 15 projects completed over the last two years and we have a minimum of another 20 projects which cover as I mentioned. So, it's been quite a happy story.
Both you and the governor served in Victor Attah's administration. The general expectation is that it would just be a continuation. But the argument is that there has been demolition of certain structures set up by the previous administration in which you were a part.
I don't know which structures have been demolished.
Are you saying that all the projects you inherited are going on, and there aren't some of them you decided to delete from your own programme?
No, certainly not. The major ones like the five-star hotel project. At the time this administration came into office, about 17 out of 160 rooms were already completed. So the current administration committed funds and ensured that the project was completed within the first 12 months. So, that is a good example of an inherited key project that has been completed. Then the power project, which is virtually completed for which we spent over N5 billion to get it to where we can say it is completed, and the gas issues are being sorted out. I think we are talking about 185 megawatts and Akwa-Ibom requires just 70 megawatts. The balance will go to the national grid. The science park was also inherited, but the contractor has issues with the government because reports that went to the governor indicate that money released for that project was not commensurate with the work executed by the contractor. So, that is why we've had a delay. It is not abandoned. If the contractor has to refund money, government should ensure that he refunds money and terminate the contract.
Are you probing Attah's administration on that project?
We are talking about the contractor; it is the contractor who got money. So if he got money for a job he did not do, then the normal thing is to ensure that government is protected, and if funds have to be refunded, funds will be refunded. I don't see any other project that has been abandoned.
What about the university project?
The university project really had not taken off. It was basically a concept. The site had been acquired. So when the current administration came, an appraisal was done; that was why an appraisal committee was set up to review even the concept of the university and to advise government on the way forward. Once that report was received, government followed that by appointing the acting vice chancellor. We are setting up structures to ensure the take-off of the university. They will be admitting the first batch of students in the coming session, and government has committed funds to the development of infrastructure to support the university. So you can talk about modifying the concept of the university; you cannot say the project has been abandoned and I think every government has a right to review any project it inherits.
Who owns the contentious oil wells that have created trouble between your state and Cross River?
I think we should put the matter in perspective and go as far back as 1987 when Akwa Ibom State was excised from Cross River. The 75 oil wells were in Akwa Ibom State, and from 1987 to 2005, the revenue that accrued from those oil wells after the abolition of onshore/offshore oil dichotomy came to Akwa Ibom. And by 1999, when the government of (Olusegun) Obasanjo was inaugurated and payment of derivation revenues was done partially - because it was not the full 13 per cent, again the benefits went to Akwa Ibom State. So, there is no dispute as to who owns the oil wells.
How and when did the ownership move to Cross River?
That is the question that Nigerians should ask because they deserve to have an answer. Throughout the period I have mentioned, Cross River never disputed the ownership of the oil wells. The National Assembly came out with an Act to abolish the dichotomy, which had been reintroduced through the April 2002 Supreme Court judgment. This was in 2004. A few months after that, in January 2005, for inexplicable reasons, and to the shock and amazement of Akwa Ibom State, the National Boundary Commission (NBC) wrote a letter claiming that Cross River State would have the benefit of claiming derivation revenues of those oil wells. Even that letter said they would have that benefit on the basis of the assumption that in view of the on-going negotiation between Nigeria and Cameroun, there was the hope that Western Bakassi would remain in Nigeria and that would then imply that Cross River State could have access to the sea and by having that access, could be considered a littoral state and could therefore benefit from offshore oil revenue. You can see the sequence. The I.C.J. (International Court of Justice) judgment was in 2002, the NBC letter, which attempted to take the oil wells from Akwa Ibom to Cross River, was in January 2005. In June 2005, the Supreme Court came up with judgment, which declared Cross River State a non-littoral state and that judgment was based on the ICJ judgment of 2002. The implication of the Supreme Court judgment of June 2005 in a case instituted by Cross River State itself meant that there could be no dispute between Akwa Ibom and Cross River States as to the ownership of offshore oil wells because we have no maritime boundary. It is like a situation where you have a man who is dressed up as a woman and he goes and wins the Miss Nigeria (beauty pageant) crown. Once he is discovered, you take the crown away because he did not qualify in the first instance. So, as we speak today, there can be no dispute between the two states as to the ownership.
What should the Federal Government do to compensate Cross River?
The first thing is that Nigerians should be told the truth because the unfortunate propaganda that Cross River lost all oil wells because of the loss of Bakassi; it's a fallacy. The loss of Bakassi has nothing to do with the loss of oil wells. The oil wells always belonged to Akwa Ibom, even when Bakassi was part of Cross River State. The Federal Government can think through and look for ways to compensate Cross Rivers State for the loss of Bakassi; we support that. We also sympathise with Cross River because it is like somebody who earns a salary; if you are wrongly overpaid and maybe after four years, somebody discovers the error and says you are overpaid. If you have restructured your lifestyle based on the earnings that legitimately should not have accrued to you, it is a pity because to ask you to cut down on your commitment, restructure your lifestyle, certainly, everybody would feel pains. Cross River State is in that situation today because they had always had benefits of extra resources that legitimately should not have accrued to them. We will support an arrangement where the Federal Government comes up with a comprehensive package to compensate Cross River State for the loss of Bakassi, but not for the loss of oil wells because the loss of Bakassi has no relationship with the oil wells. Cross River State has not lost the oil wells because they never owned it.
Kidnapping is on the increase in Akwa Ibom; why?
That is a global issue; even the United States, with all the resources, cannot have a crime-free society. Crime is there, but the responsibility of every government is to ensure the protection of lives and property. That is the primary responsibility of every government. And I think Akwa Ibom has risen to that challenge. So, when you give the impression that things are out of hand in Akwa Ibom, I disagree with you. Kidnapping is a menace that has gradually crept into what I may like to call the cycle of crime in Nigeria. It was a Niger Delta problem, but is spreading to other parts of the country; spreading to the South West, and is worst in the South East. It is like armed robbery; it starts from one location and before long it spreads to every part of Nigeria. It is not an Akwa Ibom problem; it is becoming a national problem. People try to politicise this issue; they try to make it look as if things are out of hand in Akwa Ibom, relative to other states. The few incidents, which we have had are regrettable and unfortunate, but you cannot have a crime-free society. Some armed robbers feel that it is even easy to kidnap somebody and make money. So, government is reacting and responding to the challenges. As I speak, several persons who were involved in previous cases have been apprehended and very soon they will be charged to court. That shows that government is proactive and responding to the new threat.
Some people have said that your governor is using kidnapping as a political weapon of intimidation preparatory to 2011.
Absolutely false! Absolutely baseless! What are the facts? It is easy for politicians, who feel they don't stand a chance, to start peddling rumours. This is a democracy. Anybody is free to run for an office. But when you have politicians who, maybe, are bereft of ideas and think the only way they can prepare for office is to embark on campaign of calumny, smear campaigns, to run down the incumbent; that is simply what these people are doing. I can give you an example. About two weeks ago, two brothers were murdered, and before the police could settle down to investigate the case, you had some misguided politicians issuing statements that those who were killed were his political associates. Then a few days after that, the killers were apprehended in Calabar by the police and we discovered that one of those killed was involved in drugs; he had a place where he sold cocaine, Indian hemp. So, it was a case of disagreement between those who deal in drugs, and one of the brothers recognised the killers and they killed him. It absolutely had nothing to do with government, but somebody stayed somewhere and claimed that government was involved and his associates had been killed. That it is the kind of politics that we should not play in Nigeria of today; politics which people think they can get to higher office not because they have ideas but because they think by blackmailing and lying against others in authority, then they can stand a chance.
Some people, not necessarily politicians, say that the government of Akwa Ibom, at present, comprises of people with questionable character. To be specific, they say it is a government of cultists.
Absolutely false! When somebody is out to smear you or blackmail you because he feels that is the only weapon, there's no limit to how far he can go.
One had been told that you are a cultist.
Do I look like a cultist?
That cannot pass as an answer.
I am not and I don't know anybody in the government who is a cultist. I am not. I am not!
Have you heard people referring to you as a cultist before?
Some misguided politicians. Since they know they have nothing else, they think by blackmailing and telling lies, they can stand a chance. But Akwa Ibom has grown beyond such politics. So we can only pity these people who go round telling these lies.
What did you see in Akpabio, from day one, that made you support his ambition to be governor of Akwa Ibom?
I saw the same thing other Akwa Ibom people who gave him massive support saw. He was my colleague on the cabinet and had ideas about how he would move the state forward. He discussed those ideas with some of us who were his colleagues and I was convinced that given his background, he was adequately prepared to transform the state. He has not disappointed those of us who put our faith and trust in him.
Some of the people who supported you at that time are saying they made a mistake to have believed you. Yet you say you are not disappointed.
I don't know who you are talking about. But I read your interview with Senator Akpanudoedehe who is my very good friend. I pray for him all the time. I think he is disappointed now that he was dropped as minister. I have been praying that he gets over this disappointment because the President has the right to hire and fire; so the fact that he was dropped as minister does not mean that he cannot carry on with his life or he must look for imaginary enemies. At the time before the primaries, anybody who was your friend could share thoughts and discuss strengths and weaknesses of the various candidates. We were in a discussion as friends, and I said: I have looked at all the candidates, and I think Akpabio has what it takes to govern Akwa Ibom and move the state forward; that of all the aspirants, I thought he was the most credible and the one with ideas and programmes. It was my opinion, I told him so. But if he is holding that against me today, it is unfortunate. And he is holding it against me simply because he was dropped as minister.
Are you saying the government of Akwa Ibom was not behind his removal as minister?
Certainly not! Mr. President has the prerogative to hire and fire. Anybody who serves as minister serves at the pleasure of Mr. President.
Have you told the governor that you want to contest in 2011 as governor of Akwa Ibom?
No, I am not contesting against him in 2011. I have no such intention. I am happy he is doing very well; he has my full support and blessing to continue and to seek a second-term mandate.

dont mind the idiot instead of him to concentrate in national assembly, abuja,let him follow that murderer. the mistake APC made in AKS. one wonders if herod ever became a messiah.The same person that was supretending over insecurity in the state and now unfortunately on the APC ticket.

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Why the APC lost in Akwa Ibom State.

The APC lost,because the people that represented the party in 2015 Elections showed no democratic tendencies,The face of progressives had departed from them,the had no message of change but lies and blackmails,they behaved more like a brigand of fraudsters and desperados.Making money was their first love.Nobody could work with them,decency was absent in their side,The PDP even became more sober and controlled their choice of words and actions,became even religious and wore garments of decorum,the had became the opposition and Akpabio looked repentant like a david.None of the foundation members of APC was carried along and the PDP decampies were too artificial,they thought their money could buy virtues,there was a marked departure from APC ideology and tenets.How could you replace liberation struggle with money power,it never worked.it was a fiasco.they people they sought to govern were more intelligent than that.Their Antecedents haunted them deeply,none participated in decent primaries.the core opposition who were experience veterans that could resist tyranny were displaced.they party watched and laughed,these could never be what they people hoped for,these characters were not supposed to be near government talkless of ruling,they were not Godfearing people and had virtually no conscience,They had no message of change,their hands were too soiled.their lack of focus and desperation was obvious.impunity within the APC was the language best known to them.people who paid both material,personal and laboured to build the party were dumped.There was a clear disconnect between the martyrs,widows and other victims of the struggle of 2011 and the guber candidiate. Unusual characters were now championing what they don't believe in.Nobody was decieved.They were vindictive and unforgiving,there is no how these group of people could be allowed to near power in Akwa ibom.They were before now the main problem of governance in Aks.They had to be politically displaced,they were impostors.Champions are made from challenges,they never faced any.They simply enjoyed government until the were chased out.if there were not good for the PDP,then there were worst off for the APC, there never had a response to the accusations of being the brains behind the insecurity reign of Godswill Administration,They tried to play victim mentality.it was like taking AKs from frying pan to fire,there were not coming to serve but fulfill their personal ambition and that era was over,leadership of Akwa ibom was no more an exclusive preserve of the descendants of ibibio union founding fathers.they had failed us and a generational shift was completed in Akpabio and Udom Emmanuel emergence as governor.

the worst thing to happen to APC was to bring up a kidnapper and murderer as candidiate. people who did everything to destroy the opposition.

there may have killed him and sold the parts to ritualist.is it not npf.

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why do you put the innocent man of God into your blander,touch not my annointed and do his prophet no harm

fools that why some of you need to get a good education,the man said he left that money for APC in 2009, because governance was adulterated.

it is known fact he was imprisoned by akpabio.

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From the very onset in 2003 as
a Politician , even when I was
not a Lawyer, I have always
known that the Law of Election
Petition is skewed against the
Petitioner and rather stands in
favour of the Respondents.
Looking deep down at the plethora of Laws and
the avalanche of decided Cases
against the Petitioner made me
come to an even more
informed and obvious
realization of this undisputable
fact 1. From now on, If I contest an
Election and I am not declared
the Winner by the Electoral
Body I will not go to the
Elections Petition Tribunal to go
and say there was no Election –
Except, there is a ground of
Law to cancel the Election on
grounds of non compliance. The Law on Election Petition
does not only stand against the
Petitioner but the Courts are
WICKED against the Petitioner.
Just few instances will elucidate
what I mean.
1. By Section 139 (1) of the
Electoral Act even PROVEN non
compliance with the Electoral
Act will not invalidate an
Election as long as the non
compliance is not substantial –
The Supreme Court
interpreting this Section in
ALIUCHA V ELECHI (2012) said
“Election and its victory is like
soccer and goals scored”. That
is even if the Refree (INEC)
makes an obvious blunder,
once it is a goal, it remains a
goal. Infact, in PDP V INEC
(2014), the Supreme Court said
a Petitioner claiming non
compliance with the provisions
of the Electoral Act in the
conduct of an Election has a
duty to prove it Polling Unit by
Polling Unit, Ward by Ward and
he must establish that the
compliance is substantial and
further prove that the
substantial non compliance
affected the result of the
Election.
Was 3200 polling units in Akwa Ibom state covered by the ruling.
I believe the appeal court will upturn that judgement based on these facts. A Judgement in Ogun state tribunal yesterday buttressed these fact when Upholding Governor Amosun’s Election
sitting in
Abeokuta, the state capital. The petition filed by
the People’s Democratic Party, PDP,
governorship candidate, Prince Gboyega Nasir
Isiaka challenging the election of Amosun was
dismissed by the three man panel, presided over
by Justice Henry Olusuyi.
Justice Olusuyi said that, "all issues formulated
for determination are resolved in the negative
against the Petitioners for lack of merit …"

Chairman of the 3-man panel, Justice Henry
Olusiyi who delivered the judgment in Abeokuta
on Friday, dismissed the petition raised by the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Mr
Gboyega Nasir Isiaka.
Isiaka had alleged that irregularities occurred
during the election.
Isiaka said the votes credited to Amosun in nine
of the 20 local government areas were invalid on
grounds of fraud, malpractices, ballot snatching,
stuffing and outright rigging.
He had, therefore, prayed the court to declare
him as the winner of the election having scored
the highest number of valid votes cast at the
election.
The chairman held that the claims of the
petitioner were largely unsubstantiated and the
proofs grossly insufficient to support his
allegations.
He said the responsibility of proving the invalidity
of the votes credited to Amosun which rested on
the petitioner was not properly discharged.
“Whereas the petitioner alleged malpractices in
nine local government areas, he gave evidence in
only 12 out of the entire 1,672 poling units of the
nine local governments.
“He has also failed to show that the alleged non-
compliance of the polls with the Electoral Act
2010, as amended, substantially affected the
overall result of the election.
“The petition is long in allegations but pitiably
short in evidence to prove them.
“The petitioner has failed to prove his case
against the respondents either on balance of
probability or beyond reasonable doubt.
“The election petition filed by the petitioner on
April 30, 2015 against the return of the 1st
respondent lacks merit and it is accordingly
dismissed.
“The election of the 1st respondent and the
Governor of Ogun State on the platform of the
2nd respondent in the April 11, 2015 poll are
hereby affirmed,” he said.
Akwa Ibom has been offered a fraudulent judgement just as
INEC’s lawyer, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), has argued that the petitioners failed to prove the alleged irregularities and electoral irregularities polling unit by polling unit, which is the standard of proof set by the Supreme Court.
The petition will not survive the second round and by the time proper trial is ordered again 180days and de novo. Will have caught up. What you don't know. You don't know.
Afo emen ayem, afo adia,afo emen ayem okuk fo atak.

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