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Supreme Court Affirms Umo Eno As Akwa Ibom Governor

Published

2 years ago

January 11, 2024

Director

By Boma Al Humphrey

The Supreme Court has upheld the election of Pastor Umo Eno as the validly elected Governor of Akwa Ibom State.

The apex court has accordingly struck out all three appeals filed by Governorship candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Akanimo Udofia, New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP), Sen John Udoedehe and the Young Progressives Party, (YPP) Sen Bassey Albert Akpan.

This follows the withdrawal of the appeals by the respective appellants when the matters were called up for hearing on Thursday in Abuja.

When the appeal filed by John James Udoedehe(NNPP)came up, Mr Liman Hassan, SAN, Counsel to Mr Akanimo Udofia of the APC, told the Court that the crux of their appeal was the eligibility of the 2nd respondent(Pastor Umo Eno) and the 4th respondent on the basis of their having been convicted prior to the elections.

He said while Pastor Umo Eno was convicted by the Magistrate Court, Abuja Division, Senator Albert who came second, was also convicted by the Federal High Court and upheld by the Appeal Court, hence his client APC should be granted victory at the polls.

“My lordships, the purported verdict upturning the conviction of Pastor Umo Eno by the same Magistrate Court, is not tenable”, Udoedehe’s counsel raised.

https://thebossnewspapers.com/2024/01/01/akwa-ibom-is-rising-the-golden-era-is-here-governor-umo-eno-reveals-on-new-year/

“If it is true that the conviction has been set aside, you can’t just bring it up again”, the Supreme Court fumed.

But Hassan argued that the conviction ought to have been upturned at a higher court.

“If there is no appeal against the setting aside of the conviction of the 2nd respondent, then you have no reason to introduce it here. You are wasting our time because that is purely an academic issue. Without an appeal, there is no basis to challenge a judgement”, one of the Justices roared.

On that score, the APC Counsel went on to speak on the case of certificate forgery against the Governor.

“It is not every matter you bring here to bother us. Since you couldn’t invite WAEC to disown the certificate you claimed was forged, then stop wasting our time. The tribunal did a good job, we read the judgement and it was a perfect judgement.“

Consequent upon this, Hassan Liman, SAN, counsel to APC & Akanimo Udofia applied to withdraw the appeal.

Following no objection from the other parties, the five man panel, presided over by Justice Uwani Musa Abba Aji struck out Mr Udofia’s appeal.

Surprisingly, when the second appeal, between Senator Albert Akpan and Governor Eno came up, Counsel to Sen. Bassey Albert, Mr. Ahmed Raji, SAN, who was in court, declined to make an appearance hence the appellant was represented in court by Barr. Tunde Falola.

The apex court agreed to jointly handle the two cases including that of NNPP’s candidate, Senator John Udoedehe.

“The decision we take on one will be binding on the other case,” the parties were told.

“We have seen your petition and we read your processes. How is your case different from that of APC”, the Supreme Court asked Tunde Falola, appearing for Bassey Albert.

The Court frowned at Bassey Albert’s counsel for repeating the same argument presented by APC’s Akanimo Udofia on the arrangement of names on the WAEC certificate of Pastor Umo Eno and urged him against further waste of the court time.

At this point, Ahmed Raji, the senior counsel to the Appellants quickly rose to apologize to the Court and consequently announced the withdrawal of the appeal, with none of the parties objecting.

Senator Bassey Albert had filed his initial petition before the lower court on two main grounds, the purported non qualification of the 2nd Respondent (Governor Umo Eno), to stand election based on alleged forgery of his senior school certificates, as well as not scoring the highest number of lawful votes in the March 18 Governorship elections in Akwa Ibom State.

However, in the appeal Number SC/CV/1230/2023 before the Supreme Court, the YPP governorship candidate failed to appeal against the decision of the tribunal which upheld the overwhelming victory of Pastor Umo Eno in the 2023 governorship elections but focused only on the allegations of forgery and fake certificates.

Gov. Umo Eno was represented by Paul Usoro, SAN, Essien Udom, SAN, Uwemedimo Nwoko,SAN, Emmanuel Enoidem, SAN.

INEC was represented by Offiong Offiong, SAN, the PDP legal team was led by Tayo Oyetibo,SAN and Barr. Francis Ekanem represented Udoedehe.

The defeated Governorship candidates had earlier filed petitions, separately, challenging Governor Umo Eno’s election at the Governorship Elections Petition Tribunal in Uyo

In its composite Judgment, comprising the decisions on the preliminary objections as well as on the substantive petition issues, the Tribunal dismissed the petitions on their merits based on the preliminary objections of the Respondents.

The Tribunal consequently declared the Governor Eno as “eminently qualified to contest the” Election and as “duly elected by majority of lawful votes cast at the Election.”

Aggrieved by the Tribunal’s Judgment, the appellants went to the appellate Court.

The appeal was however thrown out for lacking in competence at the Appeal Court, Lagos judicial division.

Dissatisfied with the lower Courts’ judgment, the Udoedehe, Akpan, and Udofia went upstairs to the apex court, which has finally put an end to all the doubts surrounding the elections.

The Supreme Court had last week, dismissed the appeal by the governorship candidate of the Accord Party, Engr. Emem Coffie and Akpan Abraham, Action Alliance, after the parties withdrew their appeals.

Featured

TEF Entrepreneurship: Tony Elumelu Foundation Sets March 22 to Announce 2026 Cohort

Published

21 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Eric

The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading philanthropy empowering young African entrepreneurs will announce the 12th cohort of the flagship TEF Entrepreneurship Programme on Sunday, March 22, 2026.

In 2026, the Foundation will empower a total of 3,200 entrepreneurs across all its entrepreneurship programmes:
1,751 entrepreneurs through Heirs Holdings Group: Heirs Energies, Transcorp Power, Transcorp Hotels, and United Capital; 1,049 entrepreneurs in partnership with the European Commission, OACPS, BMZ and GIZ; 100 entrepreneurs in partnership with Sèmè City Development Agency; 100 entrepreneurs in partnership with DEG, the German Development Agency; 100 entrepreneurs in partnership with the IKEA Foundation, UNICEF’s Generation Unlimited and the Dutch Government; and 100 entrepreneurs in partnership with UNDP and the Rwandan Ministry of Youth and Arts.

Applications to the flagship programme were received from over 265,000 young Africans, representing all 54 African countries, underscoring Africa’s vibrant entrepreneurial sector and the funding challenge for entrepreneurs. The new cohort will join the TEF Alumni community of more than 24,000 entrepreneurs.

The selection process is conducted by Ernst & Young, ensuring an independent and rigorous assessment of applicants.

Each selected Tony Elumelu Entrepreneur will receive $5,000 in non-refundable seed capital, access to world-class business management training on TEFConnect, one-on-one mentorship, and entry into a powerful network of investors, partners, and other entrepreneurs.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation has empowered over 2.5 million young Africans with access to business management training on our proprietary digital hub, TEFConnect, and disbursed over US$100 million in seed capital to more than 24,000 selected entrepreneurs. Collectively, these entrepreneurs have generated $4.2 billion in revenue and created more than 1.5 million direct and indirect jobs. Through our support for African entrepreneurs, TEF has lifted 2.1 million Africans above the poverty line, and positively impacted more than 4 million African households, with 46% of supported entrepreneurs being African women.

Ahead of the upcoming announcement, Tony O. Elumelu, C.F.R., Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, reiterates his unwavering belief in the potential of Africa’s entrepreneurs:

“The future of Africa will be built by Africans who create businesses, generate jobs and solve the challenges of our continent. At the Tony Elumelu Foundation, we believe that empowering entrepreneurs is the most sustainable path to Africa’s economic transformation.

I look forward to announcing and congratulating the 2026 cohort of Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurs and look forward to witnessing the impact they will create across our continent.”

The general public is invited to join, virtually.

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Eid-El-Fitr: Glo Felicitates with Muslims, Urges National Unity, Compassion

Published

22 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Eric

High premium Technology Company, Globacom, has felicitated with Muslims across Nigeria as they celebrate Eid-el-Fitr festival which marks the successful completion of the Ramadan fast.

In a goodwill message released in Lagos, the company commended the resilience and devotion shown by the faithful during the 30 days of spiritual reflection, sacrifice, and abstinence.

Globacom emphasized the importance of love, sacrifice, and community, encouraging Nigerians to embody these values.

The company explained that the end of Ramadan should serve as a springboard for continued personal growth, urging Nigerians to “use Eid-El-Fitri as a moment to reflect on their spiritual journey, promote the spirit of being one’s brother’s keeper, regardless of faith or background, and make sacrifices towards building a more prosperous and peaceful nation for all”.

Globacom enjoined its millions of subscribers to utilize the network’s innovative and affordable data and voice offerings to enhance their festive experience. It reaffirmed its commitment to providing seamless connectivity and ensuring that family and friends can stay in touch, share moments of joy, and exchange Sallah greetings throughout the holidays and beyond.

Featured

Reno, Fani-Kayode’s Brains Configured to Say Anything and Delete – Dele Momodu

Published

2 days ago

March 18, 2026

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

Renowned journalist and a chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Chief Dele Momodu, has come down hard on two loyalists of President Bola Tinubu, Reno Omokri and Femi Fani-Kayode, who were ambassadors-designate, before being posted to Mexico and Germany respectively.

Momodu, in a statement titled Reno Omokri and Femi Fani-Kayode: A Tale of Two Shameless friends, and posted on his verified social media handles, including Instagram, noted that the two men have proved themselves as very ‘shameless’, with brains configured to say anything and delete immediately.

While referring to Reno and Fani-Kayode as two perpetual agents of perfidy’, Momodu informed that his statement was in other not to give the ‘two…friends’ the impression to think they could bully him into silence and submission.

“No. They can’t. They both have no credibility whatsoever. Together, they’ve expressed the worst views ever about BOLA TINUBU that they will never be able to erase, or clean up, in a million years, except the world finally comes to an end,” he said.

While maintaining that he stands by his qualification of President Tinubu as a dictator, he clarified that the duo of Rwno and Fani-Kayode has disparaged and said worst things about Tinubu in the past, with whom they are hobnobbying with at the present.

Momodu revealed that his suspension of his weekly column on ThisDay and The Boss Newspaper was out of respect for some Yoruba elders, for Tinubu, and not to be critical of him as he did to his predecessors, saying that he has nothing against the president except for his consistent dive into the world of dictatorship and tyranny.

The Ovation Magazine publisher berated the duo of Reno and Fani-Kayode for severally reaching out to him privately for publicity. He also boted that he is not a victim of poor upbringing as the two men constantly portray. He further contrasted himself from the two men, saying he does not fight like pigs, and unlike the duo, has a job.

Read the statement in full

RENO OMOKRI & FEMI FANI-KAYODE: A TALE OF TWO SHAMELESS FRIENDS…

I was going to ignore these two perpetual agents of perfidy but later decided to respond to them just in case they think they could bully me into 🔕 silence and submission.

No. They can’t. They both have no credibility whatsoever. Together, they’ve expressed the worst views ever about BOLA TINUBU that they will never be able to erase, or clean up, in a million years, except the world finally comes to an end.

The only reason I could adduce for Tinubu’s tolerance of both irritants is desperation and his inability to find better people to do the dirty jobs. The brains of these ones have been configured to say anything and delete immediately.

I have never disparaged TINUBU in my life. I have never called him a murderer. I have never called him a drug baron or addict. I’m intelligent enough, not to say what I have no proof of. Only morons talk without thinking. I thank God for good upbringing. I do not fight like pigs. And I have a job and manage my modest income. I’m not seeking government appoints. I know how many times Femi and Reno have reached out to me, privately, either begging for publicity or apologizing for attacking me publicly.

All I have accused Tinubu of is DICTATORSHIP and I stand by it with my full chest. I oppose tyranny because I once suffered under it. Chief Moshood Abiola won an election but dictatorship deprived him of his victory. Why should we replace military dictators with civilian slavemasters. That’s my only grouse against TINUBU. Because of our past association, I have been partial and generous to him by not being as critical of him as I did to his predecessors.
Because of TINUBU, I stopped writing my PENDULUM column on the Backpage of Thisday and The Boss newspapers. Also, out of respect for Yoruba elder statesmen, including retired Generals who pleaded that we give him time to stabilize. They are alive to bear me witness.

How Femi and Reno can continue to harass people on behalf of a TINUBU they’ve permanently damaged and sent to the cleaners really baffles me.

But this is Nigeria…

– AARE BASORUN AKINROGUN DELE MOMODU