Uncertainty surrounds Bayelsa gov as Supreme Court sacks APC Lyon

The Bayelsa State All Progressives Congress governorship candidate David Lyon’s hope of assumption of office on Friday (today) as the fifth governor of the state was on Thursday dashed by a judgment of the Supreme Court.

The APC and the Peoples Democratic Party were shocked by the judgment, which created uncertainty in Bayelsa State as both parties disagreed on its interpretation.

In the Supreme Court, there were signs that both parties did not expect any surprise as only a handful of their supporters were in the scanty courtroom when the case was heard and judgment was delivered.

The court nullified the election of Lyon and his running mate, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, who were declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission as winners of the November 16, 2019 governorship election in the state.

The judgment was delivered by a five-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Mary Peter-Odili.

The panel, in its unanimous judgment, ordered the candidates of the party with the next highest votes and the required constitutional spread of votes in the results of the governorship election declared by INEC to be sworn in as their replacements.

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In what appeared to be a twist of fate, as the apex court was delivering the judgment, Lyon was rounding off preparations for his inauguration.

As part of the preparations, the ex-governor-elect did a rehearsal at the Samson Siasia Stadium, where he was driven round the main field in a motorcade on Thursday.

Also, the outgoing Governor of the state, Henry Dickson, a PDP member, had already concluded arrangements to meet with Lyon very early on Friday (today) with a view to handing over official documents to him at the state Government House.

Justice Ejembi Eko, who read the judgment, noted that the claims” by Degi-Eremienyo appeared to be “fraudulent”, pointing out to “several names he uses variously chameleonically to suit the changing environment.”

He ruled that Degi-Eremienyo’s disqualification on the basis of submitting false information to INEC had infected the joint ticket with which he and Lyon contested the election and emerged victorious.

He said, “In sum total, the joint ticket of the first and second respondents (Lyon and Degi-Eremienyo) sponsored by the 3rd respondent, APC, was vitiated by the disqualification of the first respondent (Degi-Eremienyo).

“Both candidates disqualified are deemed not to be candidates in the governorship election.”

Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Eko, nullified the APC’s victory, restored and affirmed the earlier judgment of Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which disqualified Degi-Eremienyo’s candidacy and nullified the party’s ticket for the poll.

He set aside the December 23, 2019 judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja which had contrary to the Federal High Court’s decision validated the former deputy governor-elect’s candidacy

The appeal ruled upon by the Supreme Court was filed by the PDP, its governorship and deputy governorship candidates of the party, who had alleged in their suit originated at the Federal High Court in Abuja that Degi-Eremienyo presented to INEC, documents of academic qualifications with about nine variations of names different from the name that appeared on his Form CF001 submitted to the electoral commission.

The names on the different documents attached to his Form CF001 were said to be, Biobarakum Degi-Eremienyo, Degi Biobaragha, Degi Biobarakuma, Adegi Biobakunmo, Degi-Eremienyo Wangagha.

He was said to have claimed to have obtained “his First School Leaving Certificate in 1976” and presented to INEC “a First Leaving School Certificate of one Degi Biobaragha other than the one bearing his name Biobaragha Degi-Eremieoyo as shown in his INEC Form CF001”.

The Federal High Court had held that there was no evidence to prove that the documents with different name variations were his.

Upholding the finding on Thursday, the apex court held that the affidavits of correction of names and regularisation of names filed by him were not enough as he ought to have followed the laid down legal procedures.

The Supreme Court also held that “having not approached the authorities which issued the certificates of academic qualifications in 1976 (the first school leaving certificate) and 1984) (the West African School Certificate/GCE), the first respondent’s brandishing of the certificates using affidavit to assert the ownership of the certificates was erroneous.”

t held that “clearly, the lower court erred when it held that the affidavit of correction of names sworn to by the first defendant” had corrected the numerous discrepancies in his names in August.

He said, “Section 182(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution provides that nobody shall be qualified for an election for the governor of a state if he has presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission”, adding that “the word fraud” could mean “fabricating, framing and inventing false identification and making deliberate falsehood”.

He added, “The lower court (Court of Appeal) was wrong that the appellants did not establish that the first respondent in Form CF 001 presented to INEC contained materially false information as to the personal particulars of the first respondent.

“The trial court, on the contrary, was right. On this issue, I also allow the appeal, set aside the judgment of the lower court delivered on 23 December 2019 and I hereby reinstate the judgment of the trial court delivered on November 12, 2019 including all the others made therein

No govt in Bayelsa, PDP candidate won’t be sworn in – Oshiomhole

The PDP and the APC National Chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, clashed over the inteprtation of the judgment on Thursday.

Oshiomhole, in an interview with journalists in Abuja, vowed that nobody would be sworn in as Bayelsa State governor on Friday.

But the PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, described Oshiomhole’s boast as empty and inconsequential.

Justifying his stand, Oshiomhole said, “It is not a state secret, if, as the Supreme Court has ruled, David Lyon cannot now be sworn; that the person, who has the highest number of votes and the spread, should be sworn in, it simply means from tomorrow there will be no government in Bayelsa State.

“But, as far as we know, the next candidate, as the facts are before the court, who happens to be a PDP candidate, does not have one quarter of the total lawful votes cast in that election in two-thirds of the local government councils in Bayelsa State.”

You are ranting, PDP tells Oshiomhole

But the PDP dismissed Oshiomhole’s statement. The party warned Oshiomhole to steer clear of Bayelsa State as his apparent plot to trigger violence in the state had failed.

It advised Oshiomhole to be careful with his utterances and “not to use any forms of venomous garrulity and clear misuse of language to destabilize our nation and truncate our hard earned democracy.”

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