Court grants Tinubu interlocutory injunction against AIT on "Lion of Bourdilion" documentary

A Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has restrained the African Independent Television (AIT) from further airing a documentary on All Progressives Congress (APC) National Leader Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Justice Olamide Akinkugbe granted the applicant’s request for an order of interlocutory injunction restraining AIT from airing the documentary on Asiwaju Tinubu. The judge granted the order while ruling on an application brought before the court by Tinubu’s counsel Chief Wole Olanipekun. Justice Akinkugbe had earlier on March 16, 2015, granted an interim order against AIT after hearing an ex parte motion filed by the applicant. Ruling on the matter yesterday, Justice Akinkugbe said the interlocutory injunction was pending the determination of the substantive N150 billion libel suit filed by the former Lagos State governor against Daar Communications Plc, owners of AIT.
Justice Akinkugbe held that the continued airing of the documentary titled: “Lion of Bourdilion”, would affect the res of the suit, which was the reputation of the applicant. The judge also held that if the court allowed the station to continue with the broadcast of the documentary, which it started on March 1, 2015, the applicant cannot be adequately compensated. “I hereby order an interlocutory injunction in this suit, restraining the defendant from further airing, publishing, disseminating and broadcasting the documentary, ‘Lion of Bourdilion’, which it started broadcasting on March 1, pending the determination of the substantive suit,” the judge said. Justice Akinkugbe adjourned the matter till April 16, 2015 for further hearing. Asiwaju Tinubu had filed the suit against Daar Communications Plc, for defamation of character, following the airing of the documentary, which depicted him as a corrupt politician.
According to him, the documentary was politically sponsored to tarnish his reputation in the eyes of the public He had subsequently asked the court for an order of interlocutory injunction restraining AIT whether by itself, agents, privies and or other persons from producing or continuing to broadcast the documentary. Chief Olanipekun, while moving the application at the hearing, had asked the court to restrain the defendant from airing the documentary, pending the determination of the substantive suit. He disagreed with the submission of AIT that most of the contents in the said documentary were already on various online publications, saying it was not an excuse to continue to broadcast the document. But AIT’s counsel Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) had submitted before the court that the said documentary was last aired on March 6, 2015. Ozekhome said the station had since stopped the broadcast of the documentary following the earlier order of the court.
The defendant had maintained that the content of the documentary were facts, which had been in the public domain for over two decades and published independently prior to the broadcast. He exhibited other previous articles written about Asiwaju Tinubu, which he claimed were not challenged by the applicant till date.
He contended that Tinubu was a former senator, two-time governor of Nigeria’s most populous state and the leader of the APC, which claims to be an anti-corruption political party. He argued that the station has a responsibility to its audience to scrutinise public officers, adding that Tinubu had not shown how the said documentary had damaged his reputation. He, therefore, asked the court to dismiss the application, emphasising that Tinubu had failed to show that he could not be adequately compensated for the damages if the broadcast of the documentary was allowed to continue.

Former President Obasanjo Congratulates Buhari

Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has asked President-Elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to pay more attention to institutional reforms and be magnanimous in victory.
He also urged him to start healing the wounds and bitterness across the land occasioned by the campaigns and those he called evil disciples.
In a letter of congratulation dated March 31, 2015 addressed to the Gen. Buhari, Obasanjo reminded the President Elect that a lot of damage has been done to various institutions in the country which need urgent attention, pointing out that he must immediately assemble a crack team of Nigerians who will assist him in putting the country on the right part again.
The letter reads: “I hasten to congratulate you on your success and victory in the Presidential election of March 28, 2015. Your success and victory after three previous unsuccessful attempts must be great object lessons for you and for all politicians particularly in Nigeria.
“For me, the totality of the 2015 election holds many lessons for our democracy and democratization process which are both maturing. On this occasion, the system has been unnecessarily overheated before and particularly during the campaign when emphasis was more in trivialities and hate, divisive, in dignifying and disrespectful statements and comments rather than on pressing issues requiring attention.
“I know that in victory, you will be magnanimous to start binding the wounds and bitterness occasioned by the campaign and the evil disciples.
“With so much harm already done to many national institutions, in lauding the military which proudly nurtured you and me, you will have a lot to do on institution reform, education, healthcare, economy, infrastructure, power, youth employment, agribusiness, oil and gas, external affairs, cohesiveness of our nation and ridding our land of corruption. Your varied and wide experience will undoubtedly stand you in good stead.
“I am also sure that there are men and women of goodwill, character and virtue across the board that you can mobilise to join hands with you in the reform, repairs and redirection that will be imperative to put Nigeria back on the fast lane of good governance, unity, cohesiveness, development and progress. Once again, I felicitate with you and wish you well” Obasanjo stated.
In its own letter of congratulation, the Nigeria Labour Congress said the election has opened a new and important chapter in the socio-political development of the nation.
President of the Congress, Dr. Ayuba Wabba said: “We at the Nigeria Labour Congress join millions of our compatriots in congratulating you on your victory in perhaps the most keenly contested presidential election in the history of our country.
“We strongly believe that your election has undoubtedly opened a new and important chapter in the socio-political development of our nation as we have finally broken the jinx of transiting from one democratically elected civilian government controlled by a ruling party to one contributed by an opposition party.
“Your victory is a lesson in perseverance and commitment, made possible by the patience, zeal, resolve, resilience and determination of Nigerians many of whom have undying belief in you.
“We believe this special trust reposed in you is a sacred bond between you and the Nigerian people as well as a call to an uncommon duty at a special period in the history of our nation.
“The times are challenging and will draw from you every grain of wisdom and courage, justice and equity, urgency and necessity.
“We at the Nigeria Labour Congress, like other compatriots not only look up to you with great expectations, we look forward to working with and engaging your government.  We stand ready to work with you in defining as well as charting a new agenda for Nigeria. As we await your response, please accept the assurances of our highest esteem”.

PDP accept defeat, alleges irregularities

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has congratulated Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari(retd.) for winning the March 28 Presidential Election.
It said if the outcome of the election, which its candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan, lost, was the wishes of the people, it would respect it.
The party’s position was contained in a statement by its National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mua’zu, in Abuja on Thursday.
His position appears to be at variance with the views expressed by agents of the party during the collation of the votes in Abuja early this week.
One of the party’s agents, Col. Bello Fadile(retd.), had said the party would challenge the outcome of the election at the election petitions tribunal.
Mua’zu, in his statement, also said the party noticed some irregularities in the conduct of the election.
The party’s complaints on such irregularities, he said, would be channelled through the appropriate quarters.
The former governor of Bauchi State nevertheless went ahead to congratulate Buhari for winning the election.
He said, “We also congratulate the APC flag bearer, Gen. Mohammadu Buhari, for his resilience and victory in this election while wishing him success in the onerous task of leading our nation once again.”

I have no regret, I was only doing my job says Fani Kayode

The Director of Media and Publicity of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential campaign, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode has congratulated Gen. Muhammadu Buhari for his victory in the presidential election. At a media briefing in Abuja on Wednesday, Fani-Kayode said: “we start by saying that we commend and we congratulate General Muammadu Buhari for winning this election”. On the hate campaign he championed against Buhari and other leaders of the opposition, Fani-Kayode said: “There was absolutely nothing personal as regards this Directorate or myself. I had nothing personal against anybody. I was simply doing my job for which I have no regrets and I wish them well and I sincerely hope that they will take Nigeria to a level that we can all be proud of.” He also commended President Goodluck Jonathan for having the courage to accept defeat at the earliest moment and also for being able to stand up and rise above party politics and being able to speak like a statesman.

According to him, the PDP fought a virile, strong, aggressive and very effective campaign, trying to justify why Jonathan deserved a second term. He continued: “It has however come to a point that we must tell the world and the Nigerian people about how we feel about the outcome of the election. What we will say here today is basically to reiterate and to reflect the words of our leader and President, President Goodluck Jonathan.
 “We therefore urge the Nigerian people and our teeming supporters to stand firm and continue to support the democratic process and continue to agitate for a better Nigeria. “We urge them to continue to support our party the PDP as best as they can, even though we lost this election. We ask them to co-operate with the incoming government and to remember that we are first and foremost Nigerians before anything else. “On the day of the election when I went to vote at Ile-Ife, I held a press conference in which I told the people that more than anything else, that we should try our very best to keep the peace in this country and to keep the country moving forward. “I also reminded them that in every election there will always be a winner and a loser. It is a mark of our humanity and it is also symptomatic of the type of people that we are and who we are that when the time comes we can say we fought a good fight but we lost. “And having lost, it does not mean that it is the end to the world, it just means that we need to re-group, re-organise ourselves and begin the process all over again because another election will come in a few years time.

“And that is where we are today. We have conceded that we have lost. We acknowledge the fact that we fought a good fight. We do not have any fears about the future. “We did the right thing during the campaign. We have no regrets about our candidate or the way in which we conducted our campaign and we will live to fight another day “May God grant each and everyone of us peace. May He watch over our nation. May He guide our President for the next two months whilst he is still in power and thereafter and may He guide and lead the President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari, in the herculean task that lies ahead of him. “My prayer is that he brings our nation together, heals the wounds and that he builds the bridges in terms of religion, ethnicity and region that he needs to build in order for us to make Nigeria a better place and to ensure that Nigeria becomes a great country that she is destined to be”

Thugs unleash terror on Ekiti APC secretariat

There was tension in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, yesterday when a gang of thugs attacked the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), smashing five vehicles. Party members claimed that the thugs were sponsored by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government. They stormed the secretariat in three Hilux vehicles. The unprovoked attack, which occurred at 3.30 pm, caused panic at Ajilosun/Mobil. The hoodlums destroyed APC flags and fired bullets at cars. One of the vehicles smashed was that of the party’s Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun. APC members at the secretariat named the thugs who carried out the attack. Olatubosun said party members had returned from a road show to celebrate the victory of their presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, and most of them had dispersed before the thugs struck.
  He said: “The thugs came in three Hilux vehicles, shooting directly at our party secretariat. They entered our premises and destroyed everything in sight. “We do not believe that the governor will stop our celebration of Buhari’s victory because we have heard him say that there would be no celebration in Ekiti. “It was the same killer- squad that has been wreaking havoc in the state that came to attack us at our party secretariat. Police can testify to our peaceful conduct; we did not abuse anybody, we did not attack anybody. “They were fully armed, they came with guns, charms and machetes and the Hilux vehicles carried government number plates.” But the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, denied the claim that the thugs were sent by Fayose. Adelusi said: “Such allegation should be disregarded by every reasonable human being, because the governor did not send anybody and has never done such a thing in the past.” The governor’s spokesman denied the existence of any killer-squad, saying such an allegation exists in the imagination of the opposition. “We also appeal to the police and other arms of the security agencies to maintain law and order, protect lives and property and never allow any hoodlum to turn this state into another theatre of war.” The Commissioner of Police, Taiwo Lakanu, said he deployed a team of policemen to bring the situation under control, saying “our timely arrival scared away the miscreants”. Lakanu said the police succeeded in flushing out the miscreants from the APC secretariat. He denied the claim that the thugs were given security cover by some policemen.

Rivers rigged election: Prof. can't read "his own collated result"

The professor who collated the rigged rivers state election result find it difficult to read out the collated results when Prof. Jega asked him to tell the whole world what he collated.
He was helped by flooding the whole area with light still our Prof. turn himself to a laughing stock at the venue where National collation is taken place.
This is really a show of shame of the educational sector in Nigeria.

Sensing Defeat, PDP decided to Frustrate Result Announcement

Officials of Nigeria’s ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on Tuesday moved to frustrate the further announcement of presidential results.
The electoral agency, INEC, in Abuja had Monday released the results of 19 states which showed the candidate of the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, leading by over 2 million votes. Results that have also been announced by state INEC officials in other states, yet to be announced in Abuja, also show the opposition candidate set to emerge as the elected president.
However, as the announcement of results was to continue at the International Conference Centre in Abuja on Tuesday, PDP officials stampeded the process accusing Mr. Jega of bias. For several minutes, they prevented the further announcement of results alleging among others, that Attahiru Jega, the INEC boss, refused to collect a petition they sent about the elections; and that he also gave unverified results to the APC.
“Jega is not supposed to be bias. Jega is not suppose to be tribal,” former minister Godsday Orubebe who was among the protesters shouted.
He said the Mr. Jega commissioned a fact finding team on reports of malpractices from Rivers State but has not acted on the Peoples Democratic Party complaints on results from Kano, Katsina, Kaduna and Gombe, which were won by the opposition.
He was unyielding as Mr. Jega and other INEC officials appealed to him to allow the collation to go on.
He said the collation would not continue except Mr. Jega leaves the venue for his office to “address PDP complaints.”
What a Shame!