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Tag: Ebonyi

  • Ebonyi: Tribunal dismisses suit challenging Umahi’s election

    The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state capital on Monday upheld the election of Governor David Umahi even as it struck out the suit filed by the People’s Democratic Movement (PDP) against the election.

    The PDP had dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to court for allegedly excluding its name from the ballot box.

    Joined in the suit were the Governor David Umahi, who won the election.

    Umahi’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was also joined in the suit as the third respondent.

    Umahi, it will be recalled, had won the March 9 governorship election in the state.

    He defeated Senators Sunny Ogbuoji of the All Progressive Congress (APC), who placed second and 35 others to win a second term in office.

    But the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM) and its candidate in the election Ajah Agha petitioned the Tribunal for what he termed unlawful exclusion of his name in INEC ballot paper.

    The candidate and the PDM also prayed the tribunal to cancel the said election and order for the conduct of another one.

    But in the tribunal in a one and half hour judgment struck out the case for lack of merit.

    The sitting which took place at the state High Court premises had Justice A.B Abdukareem presiding.

    Delivering Judgement on the tribunal sitting, which lasted for over three months on Monday, Justice Abdukareem said that PDM failed to proof that it conducted primaries in line with the provisions of the electoral acts.

    The Tribunal also said that there was no evidence before it to show that the party submitted the name of their candidate to INEC before the deadline stipulated by INEC for parties to do so.

    “Your party sent the name three days after closure of submission according to finding”

    “Also your party did not organize primaries as to produce a candidate according to INECs guideline, therefore your petition lacks merit, the Tribunal said.

    The member representing Ohaozara, Onicha and Ivo Federal Constituency, Livinus Makwe congratulated the Governor on the ruling.

    He noted that the tribunal’s judgement which affirmed the victory of Ebonyi state Governor was a true reflection of the wishes of Ebonyi people which they demonstrated on the March 9, 2019 Governorship poll.

    In a statement issued by his Media office in Abakaliki, the Lawmaker noted that he was not surprised about the governor’s victory owing to the general acceptance and popularity which Umahi’s administration is enjoying in the state.

    He said that the petitioners decision to challenge the outcome of the election was a nullity as Umahi’s election was adjudged by all Observers to be credible, free and fair.

    Mr Makwe also commended the Peoples Democractic Party and the entire people of Ebonyi state for their continuous support and cooperation with the present leadership in the state.

  • JUST IN: Masked gunmen kidnap two Chinese nationals in Ebonyi

    Two Chinese nationals, Sun Zhixin and Wang Quing Hu have been kidnapped in Ebonyi state.

    The two Chinese, both male are staff of Tongyi Construction Company.

    They were working on a road project in Ohaozara local government area of Ebonyi State when they were forcefully whisked away by armed gunmen.

    They were taken off the construction site around 3:30pm on Wednesday by a group of masked armed men.

    It was gathered that the Chinese nationals were in a ditch at a place called Ivo River when the gunmen invaded the place with arms, forced the workers out of the pit and took the two Chinese to an unknown destination.

    The company is constructing the road which links the Ohaozara community called Ogwu with Ivo local government and Okpanku community in Enugu.

    Police spokesman in the state, Odah Loveth confirmed the kidnap of the two Chinese.

    She said that police have dispatched its men for possible rescuing of the kidnapped victims unhurt.

    “The State Commissioner of Police, Awoshola Awotinde on receiving information of the kidnap personally led a tactical team to the construction site, owned by Tongyi group of companies located at Ivo river at the boundary between Ebonyi and Enugu state, where Sun Zhixin and Wang Quing Hu both male, Chinese nationals were forcefully taken away.

    “The area was combed to track down the bandits but no result, a track down rescue team has been dispatched to move on in other to rescue the Chinese nationals unhurt,” she said.

    The spokesman appealed for adequate information from the general public that will help the police in their investigation.

    She expressed shock that the company moved to such lonely site without applying for security from the police.

  • Ebonyi NLC commends Buhari for signing N30,000 Minimum Wage Bill

    The Nigeria Labour Congress, Ebonyi Chapter has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for signing the N30,000 new minimum wage bill into law.

    Ebonyi NLC Chairman, Mr Leo Nkah, who spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja, said Buhari has proved to be a caring leader.

    NAN recalls that Buhari on Thursday signed the N30,000 new minimum wage bill already passed by the National Assembly.

    Nkah called for quick release of the minimum wage table to enable workers receive the new pay as quickly as possible.

    Nkah, who is also, the President, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Ebonyi Chapter, expressed the hope that state governors would not hesitate to pay the new wage to their workers, since it was a collective agreement.

    He also commended the national leadership of organised labour for their doggedness throughout the negotiation for the new national minimum wage.

    Nkah stressed the need to continue the fight especially at the state level, to ensure that states adopt salary table released by relevant government agencies.

  • Court sacks Ebonyi senator, orders fresh poll

    Court sacks Ebonyi senator, orders fresh poll

    A Federal High Court sitting in Abakaliki has sacked Sen. Sonni Ogbuoji, representing Ebonyi South Senatorial District from office.

    The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a fresh election with immediate effect in the senatorial district.

    The presiding judge, Justice Akintola Aluko, handed down the judgement on Thursday in Abakaliki.

    Aluko also ordered INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to the senator in 2015 and immediately conduct a fresh election to fill the vacant seat.

    The court held that by defecting from the party under which platform he was elected to another party, Ogbuoji flouted section 68(1)g of the 1999 constitution.

    The court also ordered the lawmaker to refund all monies or any order form of payment he might have received as benefits from the position of senator from the date of his defection to the coffers of government.

    The judge said: “Section 68(1)g says that a member of Senate or House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the house if being a person whose election to the house was sponsored by another political party.

    “The person shall vacate his seat if he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which he was elected.

    “Provided that his membership of the latter political party is not as a result of a division in the political party, which he was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.

    “In other words, any lawmaker who defects to another political party when the party under whose platform he was elected was not undergoing any form of crisis or was not part of a merger with two or more political parties shall vacate his seat.”

    In the 71-page judgment, Aluko held that Ogbuoji, who defected from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2018, flouted the above section of the constitution.

    The judgment was in respect of suit number FHC/AI/CS/44/2018 filed by Ogbonnaya Anegu, Oti Ude, Richard Ajali, Sunday Okoro and Simon Ogbadu for themselves and on behalf of the members of PDP in Ebonyi south.

    The petitioners had sued Ogbuoji and INEC as 1st and 2nd defendants, asking the court to declare Ogbuoji’s seat vacant for defecting to APC when there was no crisis or division in PDP.

    The plaintiffs also prayed the court to order the first defendant (Ogbuoji) to refund all monies he might have been paid since January 2018, when he defected from PDP to APC.

    The plaintiffs contended that Ogbuoji’s conduct, if not condemned and upturned, would encourage political prostitution and legislative rascality.

    But in his defence, Ogbuoji claimed that he resigned his membership of the PDP and defected to APC on Jan. 27, 2017 and not January 2018 as claimed by the plaintiffs.

    He also said that the crisis in the party was finally resolved in July 2017 by the Supreme Court but that before then, he had resigned his membership of the party via a letter he submitted to the PDP Secretary of his Ebunwana Ward, Mrs Ragina Agwu on Jan. 27, 2017.

    But the plaintiffs countered by providing evidence that the said Agwu was not the secretary of the ward at the time the said letter was allegedly given to her.
    She was said to have been expelled by the party on January 23, 2017.

    They also argued that Ogbuoji, who claimed to have defected from PDP to APC in January 2017 took active part in the non-elective and elective congresses of PDP in August and December 2017 as a delegate.

    The court, in its findings, said there were discrepancies in the pieces of evidence provided by Ogbuoji which, it maintained, rendered them unreliable and doubtful.

    “There is no basis to attach any probative or evidential value to the said exhibits.

    “What that means is that the defendant’s claim of resignation on January 2017 is shrouded in inconsistencies, contradictions and suspicion,” the judge said.

    The court, therefore, held that the plaintiffs proved their case beyond reasonable doubt, “adducing credible evidence to establish that Ogbuoji defected to the APC in January 2018 and not January 2017 as he claimed in his defence.

    “It is also said that at the time of defection, there was no division or faction in PDP to warrant such defection as permitted by section 68 (1)g of the constitution.

    “By the evidence before me, I find that the 1st defendant is guilty of unholy political flirtation and coquetry which the makers and drafters of the constitution resolved to outlaw by the enactment of section 68(1)g of the constitution.

    “Having failed to vacate his seat in the Senate, following his unconstitutional defection in a manner that suggests that he ate his cake and still wanted to have it, he is liable to be forced out and refund to the National Assembly.

    “He is therefore to refund all monies in form of salaries, allowances, or whatsoever paid to him by virtue of his unconstitutional holding on to the position as a senator beginning from the date of his unconstitutional defection to date.

    “Consequently, I hold that the case of the plaintiffs has merit and hereby succeeds,” Aluko said.

    The court awarded the sum of N500,000 in favour of the plaintiffs.

    News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ogbuoji contested the 2019 governorship election in Ebonyi on the platform of APC but lost to the incumbent Gov. David Umahi.

  • Halt implementation of operation ‘Puff Adder’ in Ebonyi, Umahi tells IG

    Gov. David Umahi of Ebonyi has appealed to the Inspector General of Police (I-G) Mohammed Adamu to suspend the implementation of operation ‘Puff Adder’ security exercise in the state.

    Umahi made the appeal on Tuesday when the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge of zone 6, Musa Kimo paid him a courtesy call.

    The governor noted that the warring communities in Ikwo and Abakaliki Local Government Area (LGA) were peaceful presently.

    According to him, the government will inform the police authorities whether the exercise was still needed in the state and appealed for one week to determine such.

    “I asked both communities to give me a summation on how permanent peace will be restored and I can guarantee that there would be permanent peace in the communities.

    “I urged leaders of both communities to call their warring youths to order and when this is not done, we would collectively execute the operation.

    “We will shock the places by using police, army and other security apparatus to ensure the safety of defenceless young people and women in the communities,” he said.

    He, therefore, urged the I-G to suspend the implementation of the operation in the state as he had warned both communities’ leaders of the impending use of force to ensure peace in the areas.

    “They have done what I asked them to do and the state commissioner of police can testify that there has been no single gunshot in those communities since.

    “However, I thank the I-G for his quick response to the issue as the leaders have the capacity to tame the excesses of their armed youths though they are protecting the communities from external aggression.

    “Help us tell the Cross River Governor to suspend the political office holders from their own side of the conflict as I have done, to make them work assiduously towards lasting peace,” he said.

    Kimo in his response thanked the governor for the reception and pledged to ensure absolute peace in all communities of Ebonyi, Akwa Ibom and Cross River; states under his watch.

    “I have heard from the governor and will relay the message to the I-G as the governor is the chief security officer of the state.

    “I appreciate and commend him for his stern position towards security issues as he has always and is still working with us to ensure security.

    “We would, however, continue doing our best in a professional manner and our intention is to use the Puff Adder operation to declare criminals – persona non grata in the state,” he said.

    The police chief noted that some arrests have been made by the police in connection to the killing of a Fulani indigene in Izzi LGA and the killing and burning of five members of a family in the crisis between Enyibichiri community of Ikwo and Enyigba community of Abakaliki LGA.

    The News Agency of Nigeia (NAN) reports that leaders of the warring communities signed a peace accord before the governor as the government revoked the disputed land and shared it among them. (NAN)

  • Fresh communal clash in Ebonyi leaves three-month old baby, seven others dead

    The Ebonyi State Police Command has confirmed the killing of eight persons, including a three-month baby in the resumed boundary dispute between two communities in the state.

    While six of the victims, five from the same family, were burnt to death in a bus they were travelling in; the others were shot dead.

    The attacks happened along the Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu Alike road, near the border between the two communities.

    The police spokesperson in the state, Loveth Odah, confirmed the incident. She said the incident happened on Saturday.

    According to her, one of the victims is the wife of a police officer serving in the state but now on secondment to Bornu State.

    “It is a longstanding dispute between Ndiagu Alike community in Ikwo local government area and Enyibichiri community in Abakaliki local government area that erupted the on Saturday,” she said.

    “A vehicle was seen burning on the road allegedly set ablaze by ‘warriors’ from one of the communities.

    “The victims were coming from Abakaliki where they attended the matriculation of their son. Five of them were from the same family including a baby; one is a neighbour who joined them.

    “Also three other persons were attacked, and two of them were killed. One of them, a woman was the wife of a police officer deployed to Bornu,” she said.

    The Commissioner for Border Peace and Internal Security, Kenneth Ugbala, said some occupants of other cars behind the burnt bus were also injured by stray bullets.

    “They are receiving treatment at the hospital in Abakaliki,” he said

    He wondered why a land dispute ”will spill into markets and road very far from the where the disputed land is”.

    He said the state government has deployed more security operatives to the area to restore normalcy.

    “The Deputy Governor of the state, Kelechi Igwe, will soon visit the area to ascertain the level of damage.”

    It was also learnt that the state Governor, David Umahi who is outside the country has cut short his vacation and will be back to the state soon to attend to the crisis.

    The communities have had an intractable land tussle for decades, and all attempts to settle the dispute by successive administrations in the state have proved abortive.

     

  • Ebonyi SDP governorship candidate accepts defeats, congratulates Umahi

    The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, in Ebonyi State, Chibueze Agbo, on Thursday, accepted the results of the last governorship election in the state.

    He also congratulated the winner of the election and incumbent governor of the state, David Umahi.

    Umahi, the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had defeated the candidate of the All Progressive Congress, (APC), Sonni Ogbuoji and Agbo in the election.

    The governor, according to the State Returning Officer, Chukwuemeka Eze, garnered a total of 393,343 votes cast across the 13 local governments in the state.

    Ogbuoji got a total of 81,703 votes cast to place a distant second while Agbo place third will just 10,129 votes.

    However, Ogbuoji rejected the outcome of the election and vowed to challenge the result at the tribunal.

    But Agbo, in a letter to Umahi said he accepted the result as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the spirit of sportsmanship.

    He noted that he did not set out to contest for governorship election in the state.

    He said he was prepared for the House of Representatives seat for his federal constituency-Ebonyi/Ohaukwu on the platform of the APC.

    “It was the irregularities, impunity and wanton abuse of the party’s guidelines and constitution, disrespect for the party elders, and killings that characterised the primary, and my realisation that the managers of the party in Ebonyi state lacked the understanding, preparedness, zeal, training, exposure and charisma needed for effective, engaging and fruitful opposition in the state that made me to leave the team immediately and join the SDP where I was given the opportunity to fly the flag and participate in the Governorship Election”, he said.

    Agbo urged the governor to carry everyone along in his policies and programmes, going forward.

    “One thing is instructive, you are the Governor of Ebonyi State de facto and de jure. You are the Governor of everybody in the state irrespective of party, religion, color, tribe, creed, and status. I, therefore, appeal that you strive to keep that in mind in all your policies as you lead us in the next four years”

    He also appealed to the governor to give succour to those whose home and property were destroyed in political-related violence in the heat of the elections in Izzi and Ezza North local government areas.

  • Ebonyi governor, Dave Umahi speaks on ‘leaving PDP for APC’

    Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi has debunked reports credited to the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Sonni Ogbuorji, that he was making plans to defect to the All Progressives Congress, APC.

    Ogbuoji, at a news conference in Enugu State, rejected the outcome of the election and vowed to challenge Umahi’s victory at the tribunal.

    Umahi described Ogbuorji’s statement as the ranting of a frustrated person.

    A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Emmanuel Uzor, said the victory of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as a total rejection of his opponent.

    The statement reads: “As usual, the pain of defeat has started to manifest and so the centre can no longer hold as regards Ogbuorji’s state of mind. Rather than accept the verdict of the people as expressed in their ballots, Ogbuorji has taken his frustration far beyond the shores of the state.

    “Senator Ogbuorji, rather than defend his lacklustre performance in the governorship election, accused the governor of plans to defect to the APC. His statement smacks of frustration because he was not only trounced by Umahi, but also stripped of the little remaining man in him politically.

    “Ogbuorji alleged that Governor Umahi was a mole in PDP. Such a statement is unfortunate and irresponsible because he lacks all moral justification to know who is a mole and who is not because he represented what a typical mole is in APC.

    “How come Senator Ogbuorji never resigned his membership of the PDP, a party on whose platform he was elected a senator twice? How come Senator Ogbuorji, who claimed to be the governorship candidate of APC, compromised the presidential election to the extent of losing his own polling unit and ward to the PDP?

    “If Ogbuorji was not a mole in APC, how come he won clearly his own governorship election in his polling unit and ward but lost in the presidential election?

    “Unknown to him, the APC National Working Committee knows the character of Ogbuorji. So they allowed him wallow and ate his own flesh in the governorship election,” he added.

  • JUST IN: Two killed, three injured in Ebonyi

    Two persons have been killed while three others were injured in Amagu ward one in Ikwo local government area of the state.

    The incident happened on Friday night.

    Police Commissioner in the state, Awosola Awotunde confirmed the incident to our Reporter.

    He said the incident followed a clash between supporters of two political parties in the state

    “The injured are being treated in the hospital. We are treating them as suspects for now as they were involved in the clash,” he said.

    The member representing, Ikwo/Ezza South Constituency and candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Lazarus Ogbe accused the All Progressive Congress, APC in the state of masterminding the attacks.

    The APC candidate for the Ikwo/Ezza South Constituency, Chinedu Ogar hails from the ward where the incident happened.

    Mr Ogbe said that one of those killed was his agent for the polling unit in the area.

    He gave the name of those killed as Igwe Ukwa and Egbe Oruke while those injured are Ejike Simon Igwe and Alo Nwamgbo.

    The lawmaker also alleged that polling materials for the ward have been hijacked.

    “Voters have come out and are waiting for election to commence but nothing is happening there”.

    He said a report of the hijack have been made to INEC.

    His allegations could not be independently verified at press time.

    Spokesman of INEC in the state, Andy Ezeani said the security situation in the state was adequate.

    Pressed on whether voting is going on in Amagu, he said, “I think so, I will have to talk to my people on ground and get back to you”.

    He was yet to do so at press time.

  • Hoodlums strip corps members in Ebonyi, collect pants, sanitary pads

    Two female members of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC serving in Ebonyi state have become the latest victims of the pants for rituals practice presently ravaging the country.

    The two corps member, it was gathered, were reportedly forced by unidentified hoodlums to remove their clothes including their pants and hand them over to the hoodlums.

    One of the corps members, who was on her period also had her blood socked pants and sanitary pads taken away by the hoodlums.

    The incident, it was learnt, happened at Oshiegbe community, near the boundary between Ohaukwu and Ezza North local government area of Ebonyi State.

    Police spokesman in the State, Loveth Odah confirmed the incident.

    She said: “On 5th of February, 2019, Female corps members reported to Divisional Headquarters in Ohaukwu Local Government Area to report that on their way coming from Ezillo in Ishielu Local Government Area to Abakaliki, a Jeep stopped in front of them and asked them to pay N200 each to be conveyed to Abakaliki. They entered”.

    According to the spokesman, on reaching 135 Junction, at Ezzamgbo, the men diverted to another direction and told them that they wanted to pick something from a teacher at St. Michael Secondary School, Ezzamgbo.

    “When they got to Oshiegbe community, at the boundary area between Ohaukwu and Ezza North Local Government Areas, the driver stopped and came down”.

    “He told them that he wanted to ease himself. He immediately went to the back door, opened the door and pointed a gun at them; ordering them to come down and give them all their cloths including their pants.

    The spokesman said that one of the corps members shed tears when she remembered that she was in her period.

    “They collected their pants and her sanitary pad and drove off. Before driving off, they collected their phones and smashed them on the spot”.

    “We also learnt that when they meet women who are not wearing pants, they give them pants and force them to wear them for about five minutes before taking them away from their victims”, Odah said.

    She urged travelers to always go to designated motor parks to board vehicles to avoid such attack.