Politics

Opposition party’s Peter Obi says democracy the victim of Supreme Court’s election verdict

Published

1 year ago

November 7, 2023

Opposition party’s Peter Obi says democracy the victim of Supreme Court’s election verdict

As reactions continue to trail the ruling of Nigeria’s Supreme Court confirming the election of Bola Tinubu as president, the candidate of the Labour Party in the February 25 elections, Peter Obi has said Nigeria’s democracy was the victim of the October 26 Supreme Court judgement.

Obi bemoaned what he called the court’s disregard for evidence of identity theft and manipulation against Tinubu, declaring that the fight against unwise policies had begun. “The struggle is just getting started.”

He maintained that he would keep speaking candidly because he had previously benefited from Supreme Court decisions regarding electoral issues. Obi also stated that he would remain a vocal opposition leader in the build-up to the next general elections.

His words: “As students, young lads at CKC, Onitsha, we were taught values and admonished to always ‘choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong.’

“Setting legal issues aside, the Supreme Court exhibited a disturbing aversion to public opinion just as it abandoned its responsibility as a court of law and policy.

“It is, therefore, with great dismay that I observe that the court’s decision contradicts the overwhelming evidence of election rigging, false claim of a technical glitch, substantial non-compliance with rules set by INEC itself as well as matters of perjury, identity theft, and forgery that have been brought to light in the course of this election matter. These were hefty allegations that should not be treated with levity”.

Meanwhile, one of the spokespersons to the president, Bayo Onanuga, hit back at Obi, asking the former governor to look for a better vocation of engagement rather than casting aspersions on the judiciary, adding that courts did not base their rulings on public opinion.

He also criticized what he called Obi’s “haughty sense of entitlement”, saying cases were won on evidence and law.

President Tinubu’s victory was challenged by the two major opposition candidates at the elections, Peter Obi of LP and Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Related Topics:Featured Nigeria Peter Obi President Bola Tinubu

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Politics

Mali’s junta names spokesman Abdoulaye Maiga new Prime Minister

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

A day after dismissing Choguel Maiga for criticising the government, Mali’s governing junta named its spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, as Prime Minister on Thursday, according to state broadcaster, ORTM.

A source close to Choguel Maiga told Reuters that the ruling generals were incensed by Maiga’s remarks over the weekend denouncing the junta’s inability to hold elections within the 24-month timeframe given for the return to democracy.

After promising to hold elections in February, the military authorities, who took control in two separate coups in 2020 and 2021, have put off the poll indefinitely, citing technological difficulties.

Choguel Maiga’s firing coincides with indications of growing discontent and disarray among Mali politicians, even those who first supported the coup and collaborated with the junta.

As the wait for elections continues, Choguel Maiga, a civilian prime minister who was installed by the military junta in 2021, is the most recent to lose support.

He was cited on Saturday as claiming he learnt of the junta’s decision via the media and that there had been no discussion regarding the delay of the elections inside the cabinet.

“It’s all happening in total secrecy, without the prime minister’s knowledge,” Choguel Maiga told reporters.

Before then, he had frequently stood up for Mali’s junta against criticism from foreign friends and neighbours in West Africa who denounced its repeated election delays and military collaboration with Russian mercenaries.

As government spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, the new prime minister, has also made strong public remarks against France, the previous colonial master. One such speech was demanding French President Emmanuel Macron to stop his “neocolonial” and “condescending” behaviour.

Abdoulaye Maiga and Assimi Goita, the leaders of the junta, announced they had kept all of the important cabinet ministers in their portfolios in the new administration in a statement that was broadcast on state television ORTM.

The announcement said that Abdoulaye Maiga will remain minister of territory administration.

Politics

Congo opposition mobilizes protests against constitution review

Published

1 day ago

November 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In response to President Felix Tshisekedi’s intentions to amend the constitution, opposition lawmakers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have called for national protests on Wednesday.

Tshisekedi, who was sworn in for his second and last term in January, said that a panel would be formed in October to recommend possible constitutional amendments.

According to critics, it may be a ploy to lift term restrictions and give him another chance to run.

Tshisekedi said the current constitution, ratified by a referendum in 2005, needed to change because it did not align with the country’s current realities.

Opposition politicians, including former president Joseph Kabila and past presidential candidates Martin Fayulu and Moise Katumbi, issued a unified statement on Wednesday urging rallies to “block” Tshisekedi.

A request for a response from the Congo’s presidency was not answered.

Patrick Muyaya, the minister of communications, stated on Monday that discussions surrounding the constitutional revision should be de-politicized and that no one should doubt the president’s intentions.

“We’re at the beginning of our mandate… The President of the Republic still has four years to go, and we must avoid attributing intentions to him,” Muyaya told reporters.