Panic in Hilltop Mansion:

Panic in Hilltop Mansion:
- CJN Wants Salami Back
- As More Facts Emerge on Udoedehe, Frank Okon Case
By Franklyn Isong

2011 general election has come and gone but there still appears to be panic in the Hilltop Mansion, the Akwa Ibom State’s seat of power as the two major contenders to the seat in the 2011 poll, Senator John James Akpanudoedehe and Engr. Frank Daniel Okon, have reportedly rebuffed repeated entreaties to sheath their swords from persons said to be close to government on their separate litigations against the state governor, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, a source in government circles hinted.
The reconstituted Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom state’s capital has fixed tomorrow, Tuesday, February 7, 2012 to rule on the objection raised by Akpabio’s lawyer, Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN) against Udoedehe’s petition, arguing that the 180 days enshrined in the nation’s statute book for election tribunal to adjudicate on election cases had elapsed.
Udoedehe was the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN)’s governorship candidate in the April 26, 2011 general election in the state. He is challenging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for declaring Akpabio as the winner of the poll. Akpabio, his deputy, Mr. Nsima Ekere and PDP are joined in the petition. The petition was earlier dismissed on technical grounds and Udoedehe fought it up to the Supreme Court where he got his reprieve as the apex court returned the matter to be heard by afresh by the tribunal in the state.
The ex-minister has vowed to remove Akpabio from Hilltop Mansion through the nation’s judiciary. He had accused governor Akpabio of trying to get him to soft-peddle in the matter, noting that his determination to see the back of Akpabio in the state’s seat of power was undaunted. 
On the other hand, the primary election that produced the state governor was also marred by controversy. The governor is the leader of the state Peopled Democratic Party (PDP) and contested the party’s primary with Engr. Frank Okon and Hon. Imo Udo, both of them former aides to ex-Governor Victor Attah.
PDP held its governorship primary election on January 9, 2011 where Akpabio was declared winner, and Okon and Udo protested the outcome to the national headquarters of the party and the primary was canceled by the National Executive Committee (NEC)of the party after its meeting of January 13, 2011. 
The party also ordered a re-run which was held on January 15, 2011 but one of the aspirants, Engr. Okon, had approached an Abuja High Court 2 presided by Hon. Justice Kafarati on his exclusion on the January 9 primary. PDP went ahead to conduct the re-run primary and Akpabio emerged the winner.
At the resumed hearing of the matter, the court dismissed the case for lack of merit. Okon had appealed the judgment and also filed a fresh matter in the same high court, challenging the conduct of the January 15, 2011 primary. He argued that Akpabio was not qualified to contest the primary because he was not cleared by the PDP screening panel at Port Harcourt, according to the PDP guideline for the election. 
Okon further challenged the eligibility of the governor on grounds that he did not pay his tax as at when due, accordingly to the Electoral Act. He also alleged fraud in the said primary election because it was ordered by Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo who was sacked from the office of the national chairman of the party by an Enugu High Court on the January 12, 2011 before he (Nwodo) allegedly ordered, conducted and signed the result sheet of the poll.
A twist was, however, introduced when Okon reportedly withdrew his appeal against the judgment of the High court on his exclusion from the January 9, 2011, primary and the case was dismissed by the Court of Appeal. Then, speculations were rife in the state as to the real reason for Okon’s action. While the supporters of Akpabio cashed in to jubilate, Okon’s camp lied low.
Several reasons were thrown into the system as Akpabio’s camp in some quarters said that the appeal was dismissed for lack of merit and want of evidence, while Okon’s camp argued to the contrary. It took a lot of explanations by Okon himself through different fora to disabuse the minds of the people.
Before December 15, 2011, when the fresh matter came up at the High Court for mention, Okon had procured the services of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Alhaji L. Sanusi to lead his legal team who filed a motion to amend his pleadings and it was not opposed by Akpabio’s lead counsel, Paul Usoro (SAN), but, at the resumed hearing December 15, 2011, Usoro had told the court that the copies of the amendment served on him was not legible and so he could not reply Okon’s lawyers. 
He further argued that page 172 of the originating summons which centred on the result of the January 15, 2011 primary was difficult to differentiate between figures: “1872 and 1272,” and that the same applied to page 254 of the same originating summon which he could not read the name of the Returning Officer of the said primary, though he was able to read the name of Dr. Orkwesilieze Nwodo who co-signed the result of the January 15, primary on the document, calling on the court to dismiss the matter but the court overruled that the matter be heard on its merit while Okon’s lawyers were ordered to serve clean and legible copies of the documents on Akpabio’s lawyers and the matter was adjourned to January 31, 2012.
On the January 31, 2012 resumed hearing, Akpabio’s lead counsel told the court that his team was unable to reply because it was observed that fresh matters were introduced into the amendment which was earlier served on them, saying that the court only directed Okon’s lawyers to serve them with legible copies of the processes they filed, but they went and brought in fresh amendment which were not in the document when it was served on them last year.
Okon’s lead counsel’s efforts to defend the document failed as the court upheld the argument of Akpabio’s lawyer and directed that the document be withdrawn and legible copies of the first amendment be served on Akpabio’s team. The court further directed Akpabio’s lawyers to join issues with Okon in the matter by way of filing their response within 14 days and adjourned the matter to March 6, 2012 for mention.
Meanwhile, the national secretary of Progressive Alliance for Good Governance, Frank Okon’s campaign organization, Deacon Effiong Ekpe, has accused Governor Akpabio of “buying time in the court,” saying, “Akpabio knows that he will definitely quit Government House for my principal, His Excellency, Engr. Frank Okon whether he likes it or not, because the facts are glaring that there were clear cases of fraud and forgery in the primary result.”
Deacon Ekpe noted that, “Akpabio’s lawyer begged the court to give him more time to study the documents before replying us but, the court frowned at their delay tactics and graciously ordered that Akpabio be given 14 clear days to reply us, otherwise, when the matter comes up on March 6, and they have not replied, the court said it would fix a date for judgment without their response.” 
In his reaction, the special assistant to Governor Akpabio on Legal Matters, Mr. Aniefiok Dennis, dismissed as rumour the allegation that Akpabio was buying time, saying that the adjournments and delays were actually caused by Okon and his lawyers.
Mr. Dennis who debunked claims that Akpabio’s lawyer begged in court, also denied report that the governor has changed his lead counsel, Paul Usoro, SAN. He noted that since the inception of the matter, the case has never been adjourned at the instance of Akpabio’s counsel, saying that Okon’s first lawyer saw the need to amend its originating summons and filed a motion to that effect which prevented Akpabio’s lawyers from filing their response. 
Dennis said that Okon changed his first lawyer and brought in L. Sanusi (SAN) who also filed a motion to further amend the originating summons which led to another adjournment of the matter.
Some legal experts in the state have expressed fear that if the recommendations of the CJN’s panel on Justice Salami was adopted by President Goodluck Jonathan, that the governor may not survive the legal battles as the former is an architect of justice and fairness in the third arm of government.
Justice Isa Ayo Salami was suspended on August 18, 2011 as the Court of Appeal President on a controversial circumstance by the National Judicial Council for allegedly violating judges’ code of conduct. He has fallen out with the immediate past Chief Justices of Nigeria, Justice Katsina-Alu. He turned down his elevation to the Supreme Court, alleging that it was done in bad faith because he had an unresolved depute with the CJN on the Sokoto state election petition tribunal.
But the new CJN, Justice Dahiru Musdapher, set up a 29-member Stakeholders Judicial Reform Committee to look into the matter and the committee recommended that Salami be reinstated back to the office of the President of the Court of Appeal and the committee’s report has been accordingly sent to President Jonathan last Tuesday for consideration.
However, a state official of the ACN has accused the PDP of using the 180 day argument to delay the substantive matter, noting that “they believe that the CJN has just seven more months to stay in office before his retirement date,” expressing optimism that Udoedehe would defeat Akpabio at the tribunal.
He said that the fear in PDP about the CJN was that he physically expressed his anger during the ruling on the petition when the matter got to the apex court last year. He added that PDP was scared that if the matter gets to the Supreme Court again, that the case would be decided in favour of Udoedehe because of its substance. 
The litigations trailing the election has spiraled into another controversy that may even affect the election of the president himself. A group of PDP members in Enugu had late last year gone to court challenging the retention of an Acting National Chairman for the party, position they said was alien to the PDP constitution. The group had asked the court to rule that there was no provision for the position of acting national chairman and a declaration that whatever action that has been performed by the acting chairman be declared null. The implication of the group’s prayers, according to a legal expert, who spoke to Weekly Insight on the matter, is that even President Jonathan’s primary election supervised and conducted by the acting chairman, should be voided.
Rumour soon spread in the state that the state governor was the unseen hand behind the legal twist. The rumour mill speculated that it would serve the interest of the Akpabio course to have Nwodo’s signature as the authentic signature thereby removing the sail from the major plank of Frank Okon’s legal battle. Government agents have, however, denied severally the involvement of the governor in the litigation, insisting that the governor could never have contemplated anything that would mar the stability of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration. 
While the legal battles continue the people of the state are in serious suspense as the eventual outcome may have serious implications to the state, no matter where the victory song is sang.