FROM ISECOM
At the last meeting held with officials of the Federal Ministry of Work & Housing, Julius Berger and critical stakeholders, it was agreed that work would be suspended on the road at the end of November 2022 to ease the traffic gridlock towards Christmas preparation.
In compliance with the resolution, barricades narrowing access and smooth vehicular transition are being removed except in few meters where it may be unsafe to do so due to undulation on ongoing paths.
Meanwhile, works had been scheduled to be recommenced in January 2023 so as to meet the deadline on completion. We urge our residents and other road users to drive safely as the road become free of encumbrance we had hitherto encountered in past months.
Wishing you Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year in advance.
*RE:OBASEKI VS DAN ORBIH COURT OF APPEAL JUDGEMENT; THE CRUX OF THE MATTER.*
By Amb Tony Okonigene ANIEVS
Once again, I have decided to respond to a post by an unidentified author apropos the above captioned. One would have ordinarily ignored the self deceit of the Obaseki’s group but for the need to guide the reading members of the public against falsehood and also to channel the minds of the PDP family towards the elections with the authentic candidates in mind.
Taking the points raised one after the other, it is clear that that author once again deliberately as has become their stock in trade, put up lies and misrepresentation of facts concerning the position of th Appeal Court.
The Legacy Group did not file the Appeal out of time. This was never in contention before the Court.
The issues raised before the Court of Appeal by Obaseki’s group centered on the transmission of the judgement records from the Federal High Court Benin to the Court of Appeal. The primary responsibility of transmitting records to the Appeal Court by the Appeal Court rules, falls on the Registrar of the High Court and not the Appellant. It was the deliberate act of the compromised Registrar not to transmit the records within the 10 days period that led to the Legacy lawyers transmitting the records themselves out of time. The Appeal Court refused to visit the consequences of the sins of the Registrer who was compromised by the Obaseki’s group on the Appellants. Therefore, the Court for the sake of Justice amended the rules as requested by the Legacy lawyers to the dismay of the Obaseki’s group lawyers who raised objections .
It also should be noted that the Legacy lawyers transmitted the certified copies given to them by the High Court after the compromised Registrar failed to perform her statutory duty. If there should be any deliberate fraud, it is traceable to those who compromised the system. The Obaseki’s group lawyers were able to identify the missing records because the planned the fraud with the Registrar.
The records that were omitted were insignificant and have no bearing on the determination of the case on merit. It is not true that the potion where Ayu’s lawyer claimed that the Legacy candidates were unknown to the party were omitted. This lie will be exposed at the Supreme Court.
The three learned Justices could not have made same mistake with the suit numbers they decided to strike out and set aside. The statements of their Lordships were deliberate and precise ie suit no. FHC/B/C5/78/2022 . This is not in anyway a common mistake in our courts especially the Appeal Court.
The Electoral Act 2022, allows the Courts to still go ahead and hear the substantive suit even if the issue of Jurisdiction is ruled on by the court. This is because election petitions are time bound. It is the Supreme Court that has the final say on that.
The Legacy PDP will definitely challenge the position of the Appeal Court in respect of Jurisdiction arising from the transmission of incomplete records to the court at the Apex Court. There is no way the Supreme Court will allow the Obaseki’s group to benefit from the fraud they perpetuated with the Registrar. It is worthy of note that the Obaseki’s group are not challenging the substance of the case but relying on technicalities to be declared winners. The Supreme Court is not just a court of law but a court of Justice.
The plan to truncate the case on technicalities by going to compromise the Registrar will crumble at the Supreme Court. Two of the three Appeal Court Justices expressly ruled that the Legacy candidates Appeal was meritorious and allowed. No fraudulent technical ground can truncate the victory of the Legacy candidates at the Apex Court.
The big question that should be asked is; Why did the Registrar not transmit the records within 10 days as stipulated in the Appeal Court rules ?
The honest answer to this will expose the fraud perpetuated by the Obaseki’s group to truncate a case they know that they have lost. It will also give an insight as to what played out at the Federal High Court Benin that gave judgement in their favour.