EKITI: BETWEEN TRAVESTY AND JUSTICE

PHOTO: L-R; EKITI STATE GOVERNOR, MR. SEGUN ONI AND MR KAYODE FAYEMI.

After the majority judgment was delivered by Justice Hamman Barka and supported by two others at the Ekiti Elections Petitions Tribunal on Wednesday, May 5, 2010, Kunle Ajibade’s epic book titled, ‘What a country’ flashed through my mind. What Barka gave to Ekiti people was not justice but a travesty.  The issue is not about Kayode Fayemi becoming governor, it is about a people who had suffered untold hardship under a regime that they did not vote to power for three years running. This is the 5^th time the people would be short changed by poll robbers in cahoots with some bad elements in the judiciary. I could not believe my ears and eyes as Justice Barka was dismissing the overwhelming allegations of corrupt practices, non-compliance and widespread irregularities against the PDP, Mr. Segun Oni and the INEC as if nothing happened.

A week before the judgment, I received many calls and text messages of information that certain top government officials were moving huge sums of money about to bribe the judges to sway judgment in favour of Mr. Oni but I dismissed such as unfounded. I also learnt ex-President Obasanjo was in Ekiti for the purpose of truncating justice, my response was to pity the man even though I am not his fan, I told those who said so to leave the man alone that he was no longer bothered with Ekiti matter. But how wrong I was! I became worried on Tuesday May 4, a day to the judgment when a top media man who is not frivolous called me to say it is unfortunate that they have murdered justice in Ekiti again as the judgment would be 3 against 2 in favour of Mr. Segun Oni.

The two questions I managed to ask the man who called me was how on earth was that possible considering the avalanche of evidences against the return of Mr. Oni? And what about the absence of the voters’ register? The man simply replied, I don’t understand this country again o my brother!  I still doubted the caller, though I became unsettled because I know his information is always correct. Very early on the Day of Judgment May 5, a very close friend called me and was almost weeping. I asked what the problem was and he could only manage to say ha Nigeria! just let us keep on praying today o, because anything can happen.

In fact if you get to court and it is a split decision where the majority will be read by the chairman, please let us forget it! I jumped out of bed and shouted at him on phone, have you seen the judgment? He didn’t answer me but hung up. I started wondering what kind of judgment is known by almost everybody beforehand. After I received the call of the media man in the afternoon of Tuesday, a lady called me around 12 midnight and with a heavy heart and close to tears told me on phone that some PDP supporters were already drinking themselves to stupor at a popular joint owned by a PDP stalwart celebrating their victory. I simply told the poor lady to go to bed that nobody celebrates a judgment that had not been given. But I was wrong. Though Nigeria is a country of anything goes I thought there is a limit to what can go but I now know better.

When Barka announced to the court that he would read the majority judgment, I turned pale and I knew all they told me were true but I still hoped things might have changed. When Barka finished his majority judgment, I only pity this country and its downtrodden. But I became very strong and lively when Justice Adebara started reading the minority judgment which only Justice Ogbuiya Obande agreed with. At a point I discovered tears were dropping on my palm top but I kept taking my notes. I wept not because of Justice Barka’s travesty but because despite the billions of naira I heard exchanged hands and which I have believed even before Sahara broke the story, there are still men of integrity who could shun such a colossal sum and stand by the truth!  That Barka’s judgment was a travesty was underscored by the way Adebara made nonsense of the judicial heresy of Barka and his two other colleagues. The unease of Justice Barka while Adebara was nullifying the polling units upheld by him revealed all was not well among the two groups which Ekiti people had dubbed the Integrity group led by Justice Abiodun Adebara from Kwara State and Justice Obande Ogbuiya from Ebonyi state; and the alleged 3 billion group led by the tribunal Chairman, Justice Hamman Barka with S.U Dikko and M.B Goji.

While Justice Barka glossed over sensitive infractions like the non-production of the voters register which is the basis of any election as per accreditation and which had been a settled law, Adebara held that where there was no evidence of accreditation as it happened in entire Ido-Osi the import is that there was no election which made him cancelled the entire results of the four wards in the Local Government but Barka allowed the results of most of the polling units to stand despite glaring irregularities and substantial non compliance. While Barka held that Saliu Adeoti of the AC burnt INEC office even though the fact was not before him, Adebara did not agree Adeoti did.  While Barka affirmed the return of Mr. Segun Oni by dismissing the petition of Kayode Fayemi, Adebara ruled that Dr. Kayode Fayemi was the actual winner of the elections of April 14, 2007 and the supplementary election of April 25 2009 having scored the majority of lawful votes and that he should be sworn in immediately as the governor of Ekiti State. It was obvious that Barka and co. worked to a pre determined answer. Events and stories after the two judgments confirmed this assertion. The story was later told of how the judges who had earlier agreed to read what is now known as the minority judgment as their only unanimous judgment made a u turn when money spoke and the now majority judgment surfaced from the blues. It was alleged that the relationship between the judges became strained when Adebara and Ogbuiya stuck to their guns and refused to truncate justice.

The Judges were said to be holding separate conferences with Barka not privy to the contents of the minority judgment until Adebara read it in open court. The cleavage was so serious that they departed separately to their various destinations as against the earlier arrangement that they would all leave together in the same security vehicle. Justice Barka was alleged to have done the same thing in the case between Omoworare and Omisore and other cases he handled in the State but were upturned at the Appeal Court with scathing words for the Judge. 

The lesson learnt from the scenario if it is true, is that people should be treated on their individual merits and not on tribe, religion or other related considerations. It is the wide believe of many that Ibos love money but Justice Ogbuiya is Ibo and yet he allegedly refused the mouth watering offer. This incident should be investigated because it is capable of bringing more serious International opprobrium to Nigeria. The present good will that the Jonathan Presidency enjoys in the International arena is susceptible to erosion if this serious allegation is not investigated and appropriate sanctions meted out to those found culpable. The implication of this kind of judgments is that what a candidate needs to do to win an election is to unleash violence on the electorate. One only prays this story is not true because any country where justice is for sale is doomed!

hakeematus@yahoo.com, 0808 3112749 SMS only.