Adamawa rerun: Buhari approves immediate suspension, probe of embattled REC, Yunusa Ari

 

.As INEC denies allegations of partisanship.

.Binani’s acceptance speech confirms she’s party to illegal declaration – Falana

 

President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday, approved the immediate suspension from office of Barrister Hudu Yunusa Ari, the embattled Adamawa State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) pending the completion of investigation by the Inspector General of Police on his conduct and actions during last Saturday’s supplementary election in Adamawa State.

 

A statement by Mr. Willie Bassey, Director of Information in the office of the SGF on behalf of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, said the President has directed the immediate investigation and prosecution, if found liable, of Barrister Hudu Yunusa Ari, by the Inspector General of Police.

 

The statement said President Buhari also “directed investigation by the Inspector General of Police, Director-General of the Department of State Services, and the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, of the role of their officers in aiding and abetting the conduct/actions of Barrister Hudu Yunusa Ari and if found culpable, appropriate disciplinary actions, to be meted out to them.”

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), had earlier directed Yunusa Ari to stay away from all activities of the electoral umpire and the election in Adamawa State.

Mr. Yunusa Ari who was the REC in Adamawa State, stirred controversy on Sunday morning when he announced Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner of the governorship poll, a move that was not within his constitutionally given authority.

 

Besides the announcement being a usurpation of the Returning Officer’s office, Barr Ari doubly-erred in that he announced the results of an election whose collation process had not been concluded, and this caused tension within the state, and stirred great debate across the nation, with observers calling what transpired in Adamawa State, a shame.

A statement signed by the Secretary of the Commission, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, read: “I hereby convey the commission’s decision that you (Barr. Hudu Yunusa Ari), Resident Electoral Commissioner, Adamawa State, should stay away from the Commission’s office in Adamawa immediately until further notice. The Administrative Secretary has been directed to take full charge of INEC, Adamawa with immediate effect”.

However, he Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has poured cold water on the insinuation of partisanship in the Adamawa supplementary election, insisting that none of the Commission’s officials had a discreet “nocturnal” visit to the Government House and ostensibly met with one of the candidates in the election who gave them a list of “collation and returning officers” deployed for the election.

The Commission has also advised those behind the mischief to desist forthwith “as such fabrications have endangered the lives of our officials (both ad hoc and regular) engaged in legitimate election duties”.

INEC’s rebuttal was contained in a press statement made available to journalists in Abuja on Thursday and signed by Barrister Festus Okoye, National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee.

The statement read in parts: “The attention of the Commission has been drawn to a Press Statement by a candidate in the recently concluded Adamawa State Governorship election in which officials deployed for legitimate duty in the State were alleged to have undermined the electoral process after a discreet “nocturnal” visit to the Government House and ostensibly met with one of the candidates in the election who gave them a list of “collation and returning officers” deployed for the election.

Ordinarily, the Commission does not join issues with partisan actors, particularly where no evidence has been provided.

To set the record straight, no such visit or meeting took place let alone the compilation of any purported list of collation and returning officers. Such a meeting would have been contrary to the oath of neutrality that we all swore to. Moreover, every conscientious observer would have noticed that the Commission appointed and retained only one Returning Officer for the Governorship election who also doubled as the State Collation Officer for the Presidential Election (SCOPE). Like all Returning Officers nationwide, he was issued with a letter of appointment by the Commission and the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Adamawa State was duly informed. The list of Collation Officers was also forwarded to the State with every page of the list personally endorsed by the Chairman of the Commission well ahead of the arrival of the National Commissioners.

Similarly, the same Press Statement created the impression that the national headquarters of the Commission specifically targetted Adamawa State in its deployment of National Commissioners and other officials with the sole intention of influencing the outcome of the supplementary election held on Saturday 25th April 2023 and sidelining the REC. Nothing can be further from the truth.

For the record, it has been the standard policy and practice of the Commission to deploy National Commissioners, RECs and other staff from the headquarters or neighbouring States for supplementary or off-cycle elections where doing so is considered necessary.

In the case of Adamawa State where supplementary governorship election was held in 69 polling units, two National Commissioners were deployed while for Kebbi State involving 142 polling units, three National Commissioners were deployed. Similarly, one National Commissioner each was deployed to Sokoto, Zamfara, Imo, Rivers, Ekiti and Ogun States. This has been the standard practice of the Commission of which all RECs are informed in advance.

Therefore, Adamawa State was not specifically targeted. In all other States, the RECs worked cooperatively with the National Commissioners except in Adamawa State for reasons that are now obvious to all.

The public is advised to discountenance these insinuations as nothing more than a claptrap. We also advise those behind the mischief to desist forthwith as such fabrications have endangered the lives of our officials (both ad hoc and regular) engaged in legitimate election duties. We expect well-meaning citizens to act within the bounds of propriety and decency”.

However, Fiery lawyer and activist, Femi Falana (SAN), has said that the Adamawa State gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru’s acceptance speech confirmed that she was in on the illegal declaration.

 

Falana stated this in an interview on Channels TV’s Sunrise Daily on Thursday.

 

The SAN described Binani’s declaration and her acceptance speech as a ”charade”.

 

 

He said: ”With respect to the acceptance speech, it already confirmed that she was party to the charade. She has to be brought in by the police and investigated.

 

“How did you prepare a speech if you did not know that you were going to be declared the winner because, at that stage, the collation had not been concluded?

 

“The last point is the role of NTA. The NTA televised the acceptance speech. I expect the NBC to move in speedily and sanction the NTA because, at that time, collation was still ongoing.”

 

Recall that the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Hudu Yunusa, had declared Binani winner of the state guber election.

 

However, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, reversed the purported declaration of Binani as the winner of the Adamawa election by the REC.

 

The Commission said the action of the REC was a move to usurp the power of the Returning Officer. It further declared it null, void and of no effect.

 

Meanwhile, Falana has demanded that Binani be investigated by the police.