News
‘There Were No Accreditation’ Udom’s Witnesses Confirmed (legal team calls for abrupt adjournment)
Just a day after opening its defence, Udom Emmanuel’s legal team abruptly requested for the adjournment of the case at the Governorship Election Tribunal after all their four witnesses confirmed that there were no accreditation of voters in the March 9 election.
It was one of the most embarrassing moments for the legal team that includes Assam Assam (SAN) and Uko Udom (SAN) since the trial began.
The first witness for the day called by the Udom team, Mr. Christopher Ukpong, a pooling agent for Oruk Anam unit 9, Ward 10 told the Tribunal that he voted during the election. But when the Petitioner’s lead counsel, Prof Ernest Ojukwu, SAN, confronted him with the documentary evidence that he was not accredited, the witness mumbled unintelligible sounds: ‘My lord, it was INEC’s responsibility to do accreditation. I don’t know what happened’.
Other witnesses were equally flummoxed when it was obvious from the Voters Register that there was no accreditation. They are Mr. Mbet Essien, of Nsit Ibom Ward 007, unit one; Uduak Essien, Ukanafun collation agent (Ward 7, unit 004) and Attah Akrang, ward collation agent for Edem eya ward 3 of Ikot Abasi LGA.
By INEC’s guidelines, the box in front of a voter’s name in the Voters Register must be ticked by the Electoral Officer to signify accreditation.
From the Register, the four witnesses called today and Emmanuel Enoidem who testified yesterday as the State Collation Agent for the PDP were not accredited. Enoidem who entered the witness box yesterday with a bit of raised shoulders left with his tail between his legs when confronted with evidence that there were no accreditation in his unit.
By 12 noon today, in a bid to save themselves from further embarrassment, Udom’s legal team requested Justice A. Yakubu, Chairman of the Tribunal: ‘My lord, we can’t go further today. We request for adjournment till tomorrow’.
The testimony of Mr. Akrang who was the PDP agent at Nsima Ekere’s ward put a final nail into Udom Emmanuel’s electoral coffin. It was clear that the earlier boasts of the PDP that Ekere was defeated in his own LGA was based on a spurious election.
‘From the documentary evidence we have, only about 200,000 voters were accredited in the governorship election of the over 900,000 total votes declared by INEC’, says a source in Nsima Ekere’s legal team, who also noted that the petitioners were ready to further embarrass Udom’s witnesses ‘when we reconvene tomorrow’.
Another lawyer in the petitioners’ legal team said: ‘Our strategy is to prove convincingly that the governorship election was not conducted according to laid down procedures’.
By ETIM ETIM
Publisher of Parrot Xtra Magazine/PMParrot.com, Olayinka Agboola has sent out expressive greetings to his long-time friend and brother, Alhaji Hassan Taiwo Fatungase, former Bakers’ World, Ikeja, Lagos Director on the occasion of his 60th birthday anniversary.
In a statement personally signed by Agboola, former Nigeria Coordinator for Ovation International Magazine described Alhaji Hassan Fatungase as the most selfless Nigerian he has ever encountered.
Agboola continued, “Hassan is not only selfless, he is intelligent, forward looking, hard-working, vibrant, resourceful, compassionate and above all, very God-fearing.”
The Ibadan-based media entrepreneur then went ahead to submit that the astute technocrat is a man who appreciates human beings and the value of friendship.
“Those who attended the University of Lagos with him in those days will attest to it that ‘Fatuu’, as he used to be called then would sacrifice anything to keep a working-relationship.
“Even when he joined one of the five-star hotels in Abuja in the early 90s, it did not take long before he was promoted to become the very first African to occupy a managerial position before he joined the Bakers’ World family business in Lagos. His records are still there till today.
Feats At Bakers’ World
“While running Bakers’ World located on Allen Avenue in Ikeja, Lagos, journalists, broadcasters, creative young Nigerians and others were encouraged by him. The records are also there for people to verify. There is almost no big name in the entertainment/media industry in Nigeria today that has not directly and/or indirectly benefitted from Hassan’s large-heartedness. As a matter of fact, he used to settle quarrels when differences and ‘head-on-collisions’ were reported to him!”
Agboola also went ahead to describe how the celebrant of the day has been faring since he became the chairman of Abimbola Awoliyi Estate, Oko-Oba in Lagos where he presently lives.
“Hassan is team-player and a man who keeps improving in good-naturedness even as a semi-retired bureaucrat. Residents of Awoniyi Estate will tell his story better. Since he became the chairman some three years ago, living standards have since improved.
“Together with other executive members, the Estate has been winning awards as one of the best in the whole of Lagos State. Solar lights, good roads, fibre-optic-source of internet, faultless security architecture and enhanced sociability…and other achievements have been recorded by the Fatungase-led team.”
Agboola, who was also a pioneer staff at Thisday Newspaper concluded “Dear friends and colleagues, please join me to pray for this quintessential lover of fairness and equity. May Allah continue to be with him, grant him sound health, more prosperity, divine protection and long life. May his wonderful family comprised of ‘Iyalaje’ Doyinsola and the children- Tomisin, Ahmed, Ibrahim and Idris continue to enjoy divine grace too. Happy birthday to our Director at Parrot Xtra Media Network, many happy returns of this day, September 26.”
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