A member of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mrs Daisy Danjuma, on Monday said she had no regret supporting the second term bid of Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State.

Danjuma, had on Sunday in Lagos at a town hall meeting organised for Obaseki, threw her weight behind the second term bid of the governor.

She said she owed nobody any apology for endorsing the second term bid of the governor despite being a member of the PDP.

She said, “My comment on Obaseki’s endorsement is personal. I have the right to support whoever I choose to.

“I am a member of the PDP and I have never left the PDP or defect to any party like others. It is my right to free comment and that I have exercised.”

She was reacting to the statement by the PDP in Edo State, which expressed anger towards her endorsement.

The Publicity Secretary of the party in the state, Chris Nehikhare, said her endorsement was not a reflection of the PDP in the state.

He said, “Edo PDP hereby disassociates itself from all that transpired between Senator Daisy Ehanire-Danjuma and the governor.

“Being a member of the BOT confers some rights and privileges. It is an abuse of such rights and privileges to openly and publicly endorse a candidate of another party.

“This action calls for your resignation from such exalted position.

“The statement of endorsement is a morale-damper to the hard working, committed and loyal men, women and youths of the Edo PDP.”

The Independent Nation Electoral Commission (INEC), on Monday, said that it still stands by its declarations for the 2019 elections despite the Supreme Court judgments that reversed some of the election results declared by the Commission.

The Commission has recently come under severe criticism following the reversal of the Imo State governorship election by the apex Court.

INEC in the Imo governorship election had declared the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Emeka Ihedioha winner with 273,404 votes, while the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Hope Uzodinma who was returned by the Supreme as the authentic winner was placed fourth with 96,458 votes by INEC.

The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC National Chairman, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi, in a chat with The Nation stated that “once INEC makes a declaration, it stands by it”.

According to him, “the law provides for any aggrieved party or candidate to go to the Election Petitions Tribunal to contest a declared election result. Once INEC makes a declaration, it stands by it”.

Giving graphic detail of the conduct of the 2019 general elections, Oyekanmi, observed that, “a total of 807 post-election petitions were filed at the Tribunals after the 2019 general elections. Out of these, 582 were dismissed, 183 were withdrawn by the petitioners and 30 reruns were ordered.

“About 12 Certificates of Return have also been issued. When you consider the fact that elections were conducted into 1,558 constituencies for the 2019 general elections, you will agree with me that the overall elections have by far been credible, free and fair”.

On the use of University Vice Chancellors as Returning Officers for future elections, which has also been criticized, the Commission disclosed that no decision has been reached whether to review the use of certain categories of academic staff of Federal Universities as Returning Officers.

It added that “while it is true that some of them made mistakes as human beings during the 2019 General Elections, most of them performed excellently”.

On the January 25 rerun elections INEC revealed that, “our template for the conduct of elections has not changed since our actions are guided by the extant laws.

“The voting and declaration procedures have not changed. For instance, the Smart Card Readers will still be used and the “People’s Result Sheet” will still be pasted at a conspicuous place at the polling unit level where the rerun elections will take place. The Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) will also be used and it is fact compulsory. No PVC, no voting. Besides, the system of simultaneous accreditation and voting will also apply”.

A member of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mrs Daisy Danjuma, on Monday said she had no regret supporting the second term bid of Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State.

Danjuma, had on Sunday in Lagos at a town hall meeting organised for Obaseki, threw her weight behind the second term bid of the governor.

She said she owed nobody any apology for endorsing the second term bid of the governor despite being a member of the PDP.

She said, “My comment on Obaseki’s endorsement is personal. I have the right to support whoever I choose to.

“I am a member of the PDP and I have never left the PDP or defect to any party like others. It is my right to free comment and that I have exercised.”

She was reacting to the statement by the PDP in Edo State, which expressed anger towards her endorsement.

The Publicity Secretary of the party in the state, Chris Nehikhare, said her endorsement was not a reflection of the PDP in the state.

He said, “Edo PDP hereby disassociates itself from all that transpired between Senator Daisy Ehanire-Danjuma and the governor.

“Being a member of the BOT confers some rights and privileges. It is an abuse of such rights and privileges to openly and publicly endorse a candidate of another party.

“This action calls for your resignation from such exalted position.

“The statement of endorsement is a morale-damper to the hard working, committed and loyal men, women and youths of the Edo PDP.”

The Supreme Court, on Monday, validated the election of Governor Bala Muhammed of Bauchi State.

A seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta unanimously dismissed the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress and its governorship candidate, Muhammed Abubakar.

Justice Dattijo Muhammad, who read the lead judgment, held that the evidence of the appellants’ witnesses at the election tribunal was inadmissible.

The Supreme Court, on Monday, validated the election of Governor Bala Muhammed of Bauchi State.

A seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta unanimously dismissed the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress and its governorship candidate, Muhammed Abubakar.

Justice Dattijo Muhammad, who read the lead judgment, held that the evidence of the appellants’ witnesses at the election tribunal was inadmissible.

Imo Governor Hope Uzodinma has raised the alarm over a secret plan by the opposition’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to incite the members of the House of Assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings against him.

The Governor warned PDP members in the state to desist from false propaganda, mischief-making and malice against him or face the wrath of the law.

Uzodinma’s alarm and warning followed some media reports that the Federal Government has failed to make any comment on his alleged $ 12 m (N 4.3 bn) fraud case as well as the travel ban on him.

In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary/Media Adviser to him, Oguike Nwachukwu, Uzodinma accused the PDP of sponsoring the media report to incite the publuc and members of the state House of Assembly to impeach him.

“We know the game plan of the PDP because we are aware that they have been secretly inciting Imo State House of Assembly members to think of how to impeach the governor. So they are trying to rake up anything they can, even falsehood, to incite the public,” the statement reads.

The governor disclosed that he had already briefed his lawyers, who he said were studying the publication for appropriate legal action.
He said the media publication, which tried to raise dust about him on old allegations, had been long settled and dismissed as non issues.

The publication had claimed that the Presidency was keeping mum over allegations of non assets declaration, dud cheque and travel ban against the governor.

The statement accused the PDP members in the state of sponsoring the publication “even when they are aware that there is no iota of truth in the allegations”.

The statement added that the allegation was a sheer mischief and malice borne out of frustration because “they know very well that the assets declaration allegation was fallaciously contrived by the disgraced former Chairman of the Presidential Panel on Recovery of Public Properties, Mr. Okoi Obon-Obia which has been thrown out by the court”.

On the issue of the so-called travel ban on him, Uzodimma, clarified that he had travelled twice out of the country and had no impediment according to the demands of his office.

On the so-called dud cheque allegation, the statement added that it was a non issue which had long been dismissed by the courts and had nothing to do with the governor