Politics
Tinubu: Prove alleged forgery beyond reasonable doubt, S’Court tells Atiku
The Chairman of the Supreme Court panel hearing the appeals against the election of President Bola Tinubu, Justice John Okoro, said on Monday that the Peoples Democratic Party standard bearer in the February presidential election, Atiku Abubakar, must prove the allegation of certificate forgery levelled against the ex-Lagos State governor beyond reasonable doubt.
Okoro handed down the admonition during the hearing of the election petition appeals filed by Atiku and Peter Obi of the Labour Party.
He stated this following the submission of Atiku’s lead counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, urging the court to admit the fresh evidence brought by the petitioners.
In his bid to nullify Tinubu’s victory and prove the allegation that he was not qualified to contest the presidential poll, Atiku had prayed to an Illinois Chicago district court to order the Chicago State University to release the President’s academic records.
The former vice-president had accused Tinubu of falsifying the CSU diploma of Bachelor of Science in Business Administration awarded in 1979 that he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission.
He demanded a copy of any diploma issued by CSU in 1979, a copy of the diploma the CSU gave to Tinubu in 1979, and copies of diplomas with the same font, seal, signatures, and wording awarded to other students that are similar to what CSU awarded to him in 1979.
Atiku’s application was opposed by Tinubu’s lawyers, citing privacy concerns even as they conceded that only the certificate should be released and not other privileged records.
Academic record
But the United States court ordered the release of the ex-Lagos State governor’s academic records which Atiku filed in support of his election petition appeal at the Supreme Court.
Addressing the apex court on Monday, Uche insisted that the issue of Tinubu’s academic records was a weighty matter and urged the Supreme Court to admit it as fresh evidence.
The senior lawyer said, “The issue involving Tinubu’s certificate is a weighty, grave, and constitutional one, which the Supreme Court should admit. I urge the court to admit the fresh evidence of President Tinubu’s academic records from CSU presented by Atiku.
“The court should take a look at Tinubu’s records and reach a decision devoid of technicality. As a policy court, the court has a duty to look at it and should side-step technicalities. ”
Atiku’s lead counsel also said the issue of 180 days should not tie the hands of the court.
But Justice Okoro, while describing the matter as criminal in nature, said it must be proven beyond reasonable doubt.
He observed that there were two conflicting letters from Chicago State University.
According to him, one of the letters authenticated the President’s certificate and the other discredited it.
He said, “This is a criminal matter that has to be proved beyond reasonable doubt. There are two conflicting letters from the CSU: one authenticating the president’s certificate and another discrediting it.”
Another panel member, Justice Emmanuel Agim observed that the deposition Atiku was seeking to tender as evidence was done in the chambers of Atiku’s lawyer and not in the courtroom.
“I expected the college to write disclaiming the documents in dispute. Does a stenographer have the legal authority to administer oaths? We are dealing with a matter that touches on national interest,’’ he noted.
But Uche argued that the depositions were done in the presence of Tinubu’s US lawyers, adding that there was no dispute about it.
The counsel to the All Progressives Congress, Akin Olujinmi, SAN, told the court that Atiku should not be allowed to bring in documents not presented at the tribunal.
He said, “You cannot smuggle in a document into the Supreme Court without first tendering the same at the trial court. The appeal is misconceived and lacks merit. It should be outright dismissed. ”
He also said the 180 days stipulated for the conclusion of election petition cases “is like a rock of Gibraltar, it cannot be moved.’’
INEC’s lawyer, Abubakar Mahmoud, asked the court to interpret section 285 of the constitution and also urged the court to dismiss the appeal.
The court which had Uwani Aji, Mohammed Garba, Ibrahim Saulawa, Adamu Jauro, Abubakar Tijjani, as other panel members, however, reserved judgment in the matter.
The court also reserved judgment in the appeal filed by the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, against the tribunal’s judgment affirming Tinubu’s election.
Obi and the LP, through their lawyers led by Dr. Livy Uzoukwu, SAN, urged the court to uphold the appeal and set aside the judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Court that dismissed their petition.
The INEC, Tinubu, and the APC had prayed the court to dismiss the appeal for want of merit.
The panel said it would communicate the judgment date to all the parties.
Obi, who came third in the election, had in his 51 grounds of appeal, maintained that the PEPC panel erred in law and thereby reached a wrong conclusion when it dismissed his petition.
He alleged that the panel wrongly evaluated the proof of evidence he adduced before it and occasioned a grave miscarriage of justice when it held that he did not specify polling units where irregularities occurred during the election.
Obi and the LP further faulted the PEPC for dismissing their case on the premise that they did not specify the figures of votes or scores that were allegedly suppressed or inflated in favour of President Tinubu and the APC.
Seven-man panel
The seven-man panel led by Okoro after listening to the submissions of the parties involved in the matter said the judgment date would be communicated to them.
The panel led by Okoro said, “This appeal is reserved for judgment until a date to be communicated to the parties.”
The apex court struck out the appeal by the Allied Peoples Movement seeking to nullify the election of the President.
The party had claimed that the placeholder nominated by the president, Ibrahim Masari, was not replaced within 14 days as stipulated by section 33 of the Electoral Act.
The lead counsel for the party, Chukwuma -Machukwu Ume argued that their appeal was not premised on double nomination which the lower court ruled on, insisting that Vice President Kashim Shettima was illegally nominated.
But Okoro asked him if the APM had anything to gain from the matter.
He said, “What will you gain if you win this appeal? There are other appeals that are asking for something substantial. There is nothing to gain but to give us work to do. You are not asking us to put your candidate there as president.”
The APM lawyer applied to withdraw his appeal.
The APC, INEC, Ibrahim Massari, and Tinubu’s counsels did not object.
“Having been withdrawn, the appeal is hereby struck out,” Okoro said.
Politics
Breaking: Court of Appeal Sets Aside Judgement Ordering Deregistration of ADC, Four Other Parties
The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal has set aside the judgement of the Federal High Court which ordered the deregistration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Accord Party and three other political parties.
The appellate court, in a unanimous decision on Tuesday, declared the judgement ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister the parties “null and void.”
Recall that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja had ordered INEC to deregister the parties over their performance in the 2023 general elections.
Dissatisfied with the decision, the affected political parties — the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), Accord Party (AP) and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) — approached the Court of Appeal seeking to nullify the Federal High Court judgement.
However, the three-member panel of the appellate court, presided over by Justice Abba Mohammed, held that the trial court lacked the judicial power to entertain the case in the first place.
The Court of Appeal also faulted the Federal High Court for proceeding with the delivery of the judgement despite an order by the appellate court directing a stay of proceedings, which included the delivery of the judgement.
The appellate court described the Federal High Court’s decision as “a nullity,” stating that the action of the trial court amounted to “judicial impertinence” or what the Supreme Court had described as “judicial insubordination.”
The court further held that the first respondent lacked the locus standi to institute the action in the first place, and consequently set aside the judgement of the Federal High Court.
“The evidence before the court clearly shows compliance with Section 225A of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended). The judgement of the trial judge was perverse,” the Court of Appeal held.
The former Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr. Osita Okechukwu, has urged the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, to focus on ensuring the conduct of free, fair, and credible elections.
In a statement on Sunday in Enugu, Okechukwu noted that credible elections remained the strongest antidote to intra-party impunity.
He was responding to the INEC Chairman’s recent call on political parties to adhere strictly to principles of internal democracy during a courtesy visit to former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar, in Minna, Niger.
According to Okechukwu, the INEC Chairman has consistently emphasised the issue of internal democracy, having made similar remarks in Akwa Ibom in March 2026 and again in Abuja in June 2026.
He said, “Whereas one agrees with the Chairman that strict observance of internal democracy within political parties is of paramount importance.
“However, the greatest incentive for political parties to uphold internal democracy is the consistent conduct of free, fair, and transparent elections by INEC.”
He argued that political scientists had long maintained that political parties were more likely to respect democratic principles and popular will when electoral processes are credible and transparent.
“Political party leaders will do everything within the ambit of the law to keep their houses in order and present the most acceptable and popular candidates when they are confident that elections will be free and fair.
“In such circumstances, they are compelled to obey the wishes of the electorate. However, when elections are perceived as lacking transparency, internal party conflicts and impunity are more likely to thrive,” he said.
Okechukwu also dismissed the allegation of other political parties feelings that INEC is the handgun of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The APC chieftain said that APC needed free and fair elections as core patriots who are committed to the genuine growth of our fledgling democracy and overall progress of every Nigerian.
“I dismiss the handgun allegation, as APC needs free and fair elections,not only for legitimacy with our 31 state governors, but for the genuine growth of our fledgling democracy and overall good governance,” he said.
He maintained that the APC remained a formidable political force and that credible elections would ultimately strengthen Nigeria’s democratic institutions and political parties alike.
Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, says Buhari didn’t publicly back Tinubu in the 2023 All Progressives Congress primary due to religious and ethical concerns.
In an interview with Symfoni TV released on Saturday, Lawal revealed that Buhari was initially hesitant to back Tinubu due to religious and ethical considerations regarding his suitability as a successor.
Lawal claimed that, however, after extensive discussions, the late president agreed to remain neutral and allow party delegates to decide the candidate at the convention.
According to the former SGF, Tinubu played a critical role in previous APC election campaigns by providing resources and political strategists, making it difficult for Buhari to oppose his presidential ambition outright.
“Bola Tinubu brought people and we coarced him to change the trajectory of the campaign through those his people.
“Buhari is a human and he’s a decent guy. So I am the only person that confront him with these facts.
“He will not say I don’t know. He would not say it’s a rumour because I was there.
“So why would he deny him (Tinubu)? Why would he… in the end he said okay,” Lawal said.
Lawal added that before the APC presidential convention, he advised Buhari to refrain from backing any aspirant and allow party delegates to choose the candidate.
“As we were going to the convention, I said, ‘Oga’, let’s make a deal. I said look, this man (Tinubu), we now know that on the basis of your religion and your ethics and your upbringing, you don’t want to hand over to this man, but he has helped us get here.
“So there’s no way. Let’s make a deal. Stay neutral and allow me to run the process.
“If we go to the convention and the party faithfuls defeat him, so be it. Your hand is not in it.”
Lawal said Buhari initially rejected the proposal, insisting that if he allowed him to manage the process, Tinubu would emerge as the party’s candidate.
“But Buhari said that’s not an excuse. I know you, you will give Bola Tinubu this ticket.“I say, are you God now, sir?
“Buhari said, no, you started with me since 2002. So I know how you work. I know your methodologies. That man, if I leave him to you, he’ll get the ticket.”
Lawal said he responded that even if Tinubu secured the APC ticket, Nigerians would still decide the outcome of the presidential election.
“I say, okay, okay, granted. If he gets the ticket, it means you are now a prophet. However, you’re ascribing to me qualities I don’t have.
“But let’s assume it happens. Supposing the general election rejects him, is that you?”
He added that Buhari also expressed concern over whether Tinubu would be fair to members of their political camp if elected president.
“He mentioned some things. This man, is he going to be fair to our people? Is he going to be this?
“I said, yes, as long as I’m there, you know, I can checkmate him.
“He said, ‘Okay, deal.’”
Ahead of the APC presidential primary in June 2022, Buhari repeatedly urged party delegates to choose a candidate they believed could advance the party’s ideals but stopped short of publicly endorsing any of the aspirants, despite intense lobbying by contenders, including Tinubu.
Tinubu, a former Lagos State governor, went on to defeat other leading aspirants, including former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, former Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi, Senate President Ahmad Lawan and Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, to clinch the APC presidential ticket.
He later won the February 2023 presidential election and was sworn in as president on May 29, 2023.
Politics
Enugu NDC Passes Vote Of Confidence On Dr. Johnpaul Anih-Led State Exco, Warns Against Destabilisation
The Enugu State chapter of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has unanimously passed a vote of confidence in the Dr. Johnpaul Anih-led State Working Committee (SWC), reaffirming its confidence in the current leadership and warning individuals allegedly plotting to destabilise the party to desist.
The resolution was reached on Saturday during an expanded meeting of the state working committee, party stakeholders, candidates and members, who commended the state executive for its leadership, commitment and efforts at repositioning the NDC in Enugu State.
Speaking with journalists shortly after the meeting, the Chairman of the party in Isiuzo Local Government Area, Hon. Jonathan Ogbu, said the current state leadership had transformed the fortunes of the party in Enugu.
“This is the only leadership of the party that emerged through a valid congress monitored by INEC, and any attempt by Enugu politicians spending dollars in Abuja to destabilise the party will be firmly resisted”.
“Without the current leadership, nobody would be hearing about the NDC in Enugu State today. The Dr. Johnpaul Anih-led executive has given the party life and made it attractive through its programmes and grassroots mobilisation,” he said.
Corroborating his position, the Igboeze North Local Government Chairman of the party, Hon. Kingsley Ape and his Aninri counterpart, Hon. Stephen Ajah, stated that the achievements of the present leadership had positioned the party to participate effectively in the forthcoming local government elections.
According to them, without the Dr. Johnpaul Anih-led executive, the NDC would not have been on the ballot for the forthcoming local government chairmanship and councillorship elections in Enugu State.
The party leaders declared that they remain firmly behind Dr. Anih and his executive, insisting that the State Working Committee enjoys the overwhelming confidence and support of the party’s grassroots structure across the 17 local government areas of the state.
They further warned that any attempt to tamper with the existing leadership could trigger a mass exodus of members from the party in Enugu State.
The stakeholders also cautioned individuals allegedly fomenting crisis within the party, urging them to steer clear of activities capable of undermining the unity, stability and progress of the NDC.
According to them, any attempt to create parallel party structures or sow discord among members would be firmly resisted in the interest of preserving the party’s cohesion ahead of future political engagements.
The members equally expressed concern over what they described as the actions of the party’s national leadership, alleging that recent developments could further deepen internal disagreements if not handled with fairness and respect for due process.
They urged the national leadership to refrain from actions capable of escalating tensions within the party, stressing that internal disputes should be resolved in line with the party’s constitution and democratic principles.
Reaffirming their loyalty to the NDC, the stakeholders called on members across the state to remain united, focused and committed to building a stronger political platform.
They pledged their continued support for the Dr. Johnpaul Anih-led State Working Committee and maintained that the Enugu chapter would continue to protect the integrity of the party while working tirelessly to advance its political objectives in the state.
Kwankwaso disclosed this during an interview on Channels Television on Monday, saying the agreement was aimed at ensuring power returns to the North after a single four-year tenure in line with the party’s power-sharing arrangement.
The former Kano State governor said he had no reason to doubt Obi’s commitment to honouring the agreement.
“Oh yes, I personally believe him. I don’t think, based on what I now know about him, that he will change his mind when the time comes. We are all gentlemen,” he said.
Asked whether the understanding had been documented, Kwankwaso replied that both the party and the two candidates signed separate agreements.
“We have done one for the party, and we have done another one between the two of us,” he said.
Explaining the substance of the agreement, Kwankwaso said it provides for a single four-year tenure for Obi before the presidency returns to the North.
“The agreement is what you said, that for four years, we will work together, team together as a group, party, friends and brothers so that after his term of four years (2027-2031), it comes back to the North. That is the general agreement.”
“Together we felt that the presidency should go to the South for four years; thereafter it will come back to the North.
“We believe that should be the consensus of everybody in this country so that we can move together as a family, both North and South,” he said.
On whether he intends to contest the presidency in 2031, Kwankwaso said the party remained focused on winning the 2027 election while keeping its long-term political plans in view.
“We have a short-term plan which we are executing now and, of course, we also have our medium and long-term plans for the country, and that is what we are working on now,” he said.
Obi had in May announced that he would serve only one term if elected president, saying the decision was intended to promote political stability and strengthen national unity.
“I want to be a one-term president because of stability. I would not stay a day, with a gun to my head, longer than four years,” Obi had said.
The NDC has consistently defended its power-sharing arrangement, presenting the Obi-Kwankwaso ticket as a consensus aimed at balancing the country’s regional interests ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
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