- As Oshiomhole Blasts PDP, Says Party ‘Reckless… Believes in Electoral Fraud’
- PDP: Oshiomhole ‘Politicizing Injustice’ …Secondus Accuses APC Hierarchy of Conniving With Supreme Court Panel
Following the supreme court ruling on the Imo State Governorship election Tuesday, the two biggest political parties in the country have resumed exchange of harsh words which had dominated the last the general elections, heating up the polity to a boiling point.
On Saturday, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lampooned the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, for his latest remarks on the judgement where he described the PDP as a “reckless” political party.
The party said Oshiomhole has been attempting to “politicize injustice” by “hauling insults” at the PDP over the apex court ruling, “despite evident consensus by the generality of Nigerians for a review.”
In a statement signed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondinyan, the party describes “as loathsome that Oshiomhole could resort to hauling insults and gutter language on Nigerians, including PDP leaders, in his desperate bid to divert public attention from the perversion of justice by the Supreme Court in favour of APC.”
The New Diplomat had reported that the Supreme Court in a judgment on Tuesday sacked Emeka Ihedioha of the PDP as the governor of Imo State and declared the APC candidate, Senator Hope Uzodinma, as the duly elected governor of the state.
Reacting to the ruling, Oshiomhole had said the PDP is “reckless” and believe it is its “birthright to benefit from electoral fraud.”
The former governor of Edo State stated this at a press briefing in Abuja on Friday while replying the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus who on Thursday said the Supreme Court under the current Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammed had become compromised.
Oshiomhole said, “The PDP is not only reckless (but) it believes it is its birthright to benefit from electoral fraud. Courts are bound to interpret laws according to the constitution. No court has the power to bend the 1999 constitution of Nigeria as amended.”
Oshiomhole said the results used to declare Ihedioha as governor showed he did not get the required one-quarter vote in two-thirds of the 27 local government areas of Imo state.
He lambasted the state’s Returning Officer, Prof Francis Otunta, for not recognising the fact that 12 is not 2/3 of 27.
He said, “That Returning Officer ought not only to be dismissed but should face the consequence of action. It was the height of irresponsibility on the part of Independent National Electoral Commission to condone such action.
“A professor of mathematics curiously did not know that 12 is not two-third of 27 local government areas and proceeded to unlawfully declare Emeka Ihedioha as governor of Imo state.
“In a society that is committed to fairness and rule of law, that returning officer ought not only to be dismissed but he also ought to have reported himself to the security how he arrived at the decision to declare Emeka Ihedioha as governor,” Oshiomhole said.
Addressing a packed press conference Thursday, the PDP Chairman, Secondus accused the APC hierarchy of “using the Supreme Court to capture the states won and controlled by the PDP.”
The Supreme Court panel is expected to adjudicate on the remaining governorship election cases involving both the APC and PDP in Kano, Sokoto, Benue, Bauchi, Adamawa, Plateau among others election matters.
However, in the latest statement released by Ologbondinyan, the PDP noted that Oshiomhole’s claim was an attempt to sway public opinions on the judgement as delivered by the Supreme Court.
The statement also called to questioning, the impartiality of the apex court as the final arbiter of the law, fearing what would become of PDP’s fortune on the pending electoral cases at the Supreme court.
“Oshiomohole’s desperation to blur public agitation against the injustice further confirms that APC is in league with Justice Mohammed Tanko-led Supreme Court in perverting justice in the Imo governorship election judgment as well as the heinous plots to use the court to take over other PDP-controlled states of Bauchi, Sokoto, Adamawa and Benue.
“The PDP is aware of why Oshiomhole has suddenly become the mouth piece of the Supreme Court.
“We have reliable information that certain Justices of the Court have been blaming APC leaders and the Presidency for compromising and dragging them into the disgraceful plots; the reason Oshiomhole now desperately seeks to politicize the issue and divert public attention as a stop gap measure.
“This attempt is indeed dead on arrival as the PDP, standing with the generality of Nigerians and lovers of democracy all over the world, will not relent in mobilizing the citizens in pursuit of an end to this and many other injustices that pervade our nation presently.
“Of course, Oshiomhole and Justice Tanko Mohammed are reminded that, as stated by Thomas Jefferson, “when injustice becomes law, resistance become duty,” the statement read.
