Obi fires INEC Alleges Bias.
LP presidential candidate Peter Obi has charged INEC of prejudice in the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. Obi responded to INEC’s preliminary objection, which looked to favour All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate and now President-Elect Bola Tinubu.
Obi criticized INEC for taking sides and urged it to stay impartial in every election case. He said the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal had advised INEC to be equitable, fair, and focused.
“An embarrassment and betrayal of INEC’s duty,” Obi called INEC’s preliminary opposition to his plea. He accused INEC of “adorning the costume of a candidate” in the election it umpired.
Obi said he expected the electoral authority to be impartial in all litigations when election participants contest the results and not file objections to the petition.
He asked the panel to reject INEC’s “misconceived” argument. “INEC’s role is to organize free, fair, and credible elections, not to interfere in the legal process of disputing election outcomes,” he said.
FG: Sudanese buses Cost $1.2m.
The Nigerian government says removing its residents from Sudan, where violent conflicts are underway, will cost $1.2 million. On Wednesday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama said the hefty expense was required to protect Nigerians on the trek to the Egyptian border.
“We can take enormous luxury transport buses to the Egyptian border. Onyeama said, “Of course, you know, because of the hazards involved and so many other things, a lot of people are going to take advantage; you’re going to pump up the price.” “The French convoy was assaulted and so forth. Getting these buses was hard. But Nigerian lives matter to us, so we had to do it.”
Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have killed over 400 people and wounded hundreds since April 15. Due to the unrest, many Nigerians were stranded.
The Nigerian in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) posted photos of buses arriving in Sudan to rescue trapped Nigerian students. The citizens would be flown back to Nigeria from the Egyptian border by buses.
Nigerians in Sudan are evacuated to guarantee their safety. In case of an emergency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has advised Nigerians overseas to register with their embassies.
I’m Drug-Free Tinubu Slammed by Atiku
Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, replied to President-Elect Bola Tinubu’s criticism by saying that he has been able to run for president without issue since 1993 because he is drug and identity scandal-free.
Atiku then criticized Tinubu’s qualifications, saying he is unfit to rule Nigeria after being arrested for drug-related charges in the US and compelled to pay $460,000.
Atiku’s answer further claims that Tinubu has dual citizenship of Nigeria and Guinea, having willingly gained Guinean citizenship, excluding him from running for president of Nigeria.
Atiku further accused Tinubu of neglecting to reveal his constitutional credentials in his Form EC9 filed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which is illegal.
Atiku requested the annulment of Tinubu’s proclamation as President-elect, arguing that APC and Tinubu did not win the majority of legitimate votes in the February 25 presidential election. He claimed that Tinubu violated the constitution by failing to win 25% of the votes in Abuja’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
Atiku’s principal lawyer, Chief Chris Uche (SAN), responded to Tinubu’s answer to Atiku’s appeal disputing the procedure and outcome of the February 25 presidential election. In his statement, Atiku also claimed that his age, state of origin, and educational credentials had never been disputed like Tinubu’s. Atiku accused Tinubu of neglecting the main arguments presented against him and the disputed election.
In response to another criticism of Atiku’s suit, the former Vice President said that the Supreme Court’s originating summons from Adamawa, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, and Sokoto states had been withdrawn. Atiku requested that the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal ignore Tinubu’s objections and averments and give him all the petition’s reliefs.
No Nigerians Died in Sudan War, Minister Says
According to Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zubairu Dada, no Nigerians have died in the Sudanese conflict.
After the Federal Executive Council Meeting, he announced plans to evacuate over 5,000 Nigerians. The first Nigerians were bused via Egypt on Wednesday and flown after that. The evacuation would prioritize diplomats, women, and children.
The 11-day war has left the streets of greater Khartoum strewn with bodies and devastated several sections. Abdel Fattah al-soldiers Burhan are fighting his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who leads the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Former President Omar al-Janjaweed Bashir’s militia, which he unleashed in Darfur over two decades ago, became the RSF.
About 5,000 Nigerians will be evacuated from Sudan by the government. We’ve started transporting Nigerians. Zubairu Dada, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, said, “We’re busing them via Egypt and airlifting them.”
“Diplomats, women, and children will be prioritized,” he said.
The Federal Government’s attempts follow 11 days of fighting between army head Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, which killed hundreds and destroyed areas of greater Khartoum.
“Over two decades ago, former President Omar al-Bashir unleashed the Janjaweed militia in Darfur, which became the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). “Bashir and others were accused of war crimes,” the Minister stated.
Three Humanitarian Workers and Security Guards Abducted by ISWAP in Borno State
In Borno state, Nigeria, Islamic State of the West African Province (ISWAP) gunmen kidnapped three humanitarian workers and two security guards from Family Health International (FHI360), a US-based non-profit. The group invaded the NGO’s guest home and seized the victims early on Wednesday, April 26, 2023. The victims’ whereabouts are unknown.
The party was abducted and brought to an unknown place, according to Lake Chad counter-insurgency newspaper Zagazola Makama. Since the incident, the organization hasn’t issued a statement.
The area has targeted humanitarian workers before. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated in 2022 that several humanitarian workers had died, been injured, or been kidnapped in northeast Nigeria. Despite the hazards, humanitarian workers help those in need.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres hailed charity workers in a 2022 World Humanitarian Day video. He remarked, “against enormous obstacles, frequently at considerable personal risk, they relieve suffering in some of the most perilous settings imaginable.”
Tags: All Progressives Congress (APC), Appeal Court, atiku abubakar, bias, Borno State, buses, Drug-free, dual citizenship, evacuation, FG, Independent National Electoral Commission, ISWAP, Labour Party (LP), Minister of State Foreign Affairs, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), peter obi, Presidential Election Petition Tribunal, security guards, Sudan, Sudan Crisis, supreme court Humanitarian Workers
