March 30, 2023
Press Statement
The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at its meeting today, Thursday, March 30, 2023 extensively discussed recent developments in the Party.
The NWC recognized the imperativeness of a total reconciliation among Party leaders and critical stakeholders for a more cohesive Party in the overall interest of our teeming members and Nigerians in general.
Consequent upon the above, the NWC reverses the referral of the Governor of Benue State, His Excellency, Dr. Samuel Ortom to the National Disciplinary Committee.
The NWC in the same vein reverses the suspension of the following underlisted members of our great Party:
- H.E Ibrahim Shema (Katsina State)
- Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti State)
- Sen. Pius Anyim (Ebonyi State)
- Prof. Dennis Ityavyar (Benue State)
- Dr. Aslam Aliyu (Zamfara State)
This decision is without prejudice to the powers of the NWC to take necessary disciplinary action against any member of the Party at any time pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution of the PDP (as amended in 2017).
The NWC charges all leaders, critical stakeholders and teeming members of our Party across the country to be guided by the provisions of the PDP Constitution (as amended in 2017) as well as the new spirit and necessity of reconciliation, unity and harmony in our Party at this critical time.
The PDP must remain focused as we continue to take every necessary action to recover the stolen mandate freely given by Nigerians to our Party and Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, on Saturday February 25, 2023, at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.
Signed:
Hon. Debo Ologunagba
National Publicity Secretary
PRESS RELEASE
LAGOSIANS SHOULD BE READY FOR MORE GOODIES IN SANWO-OLU’S SECOND TERM – SPOKESMAN
- Says Governor, deputy’s re-election, affirmation of people’s trust in their first term efforts
The Chief Press Secretary (CPS) to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State, Mr. Gboyega Akosile, has assured residents of the State to be ready for a lot more goodies from the Governor and his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat during their second term in office.
He said Governor Sanwo-Olu, who is very happy about the people of Lagos State giving him and his deputy, a mandate for the second time in office, will meet the yearnings and aspirations of millions of Lagosians through the administration’s THEMES PLUS agenda.
Akosile spoke on Friday night during Inside Politics with CKN, a political interview programme on Silverbird Television anchored by Chris Kehinde Nwandu.
Sanwo-Olu’s spokesman said the Governor, who has made a lot of huge investments in transportation, education, health, entertainment, security, environment, civil service, technology, and other critical sectors in his first term will do more during the second term in the delivery of the dividends of democracy and good governance to the people.
He said: “The Governor started on a journey with six pillars’ THEMES agenda, which are Traffic Management and Transportation, Health and Environment, Education and Technology, Making Lagos a 21st Century Economy, Entertainment and Tourism, and Security and Governance. The Governor has made very huge investments in all of these areas. And part of our achievements in the first term, which we have not even ended, is the commissioning of the Oba Sekumade Road in Ikorodu (commissioned on Friday) among several other road networks across the State, completed and handed over to the public in the first term.
“Going into the second term, the Governor will continue with his agenda but he is going to turn it into THEMES PLUS because this time around we are going to have things around inclusion; inclusion in governance. We are going to have things around gender balancing, whereby we give more opportunities to the youth and the women.
“Governor Sanwo-Olu in his wisdom together with his deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat has tried to meet the 35 percent Affirmative Action for women and even the youths but going forward, we are going to be focusing more on deliberately including women and youths in all of the activities. So, Lagosians should just be ready for a lot more goodies from Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Dr. Obafemi Hamzat.”
Speaking on the March 18 governorship election in Lagos, Akosile said the victory of Governor Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Dr. Hamzat is an affirmation that the people of Lagos State trusted them in the first term.
“Governor Sanwo-Olu’s feeling about the election is in two ways. Naturally, he feels relieved. He feels happy and excited to have been reelected for the second term in office. But on the other side, he feels humbled. He feels challenged because he has said on two or three occasions since we won the election that it is more like a challenge for him and his deputy governor.
“Today (Friday) when we went to commission Oba Sekumade Road in Ikorodu, he said their reelection is an affirmation of the fact that the people of Lagos State trusted them in the first term, which is still ongoing and Lagosians are now trusting them with more works. So, for him, it is more of a challenge for them to do more.
He said: “because the people believe that they (Sanwo-Olu and Hamzat) can deliver more that is why they trusted their lives in their hands for the second term. I think that is a very deep one from someone who understands and I appreciate the value of that thumb print that an average voter and almost 800,000 of them went out on the day of the election to cast their ballots for him. So, I think the Governor is particularly very happy about the people of Lagos State, giving him and his deputy a mandate for the second time in office.”
Akosile also kicked against any attempt to divide Lagos residents through ethnicity. “We want a Lagos where our diversity will continue to be our source of strength. We want a Lagos where everybody who is a taxpaying Lagosian is not criminally minded. You do your work legitimately; nobody is disturbing you and you are not disturbing anybody. That is the kind of Lagos that we want.
“The Governor in his Acceptance Speech spoke very well about it that we don’t want division. We don’t want any form of bigotry. We don’t want any form of ethnic coloration in our affairs in Lagos State.”
Akosile said Governor Sanwo-Olu was very proactive during the last general elections in curbing the activities of those who tried to use ethnicity to cause division in the State before and during the election by calling them to order and that was why the elections were peaceful in many parts of Lagos State.
He also expressed his displeasure against those calling for the cancellation of the last gubernatorial election based on alleged voter intimidation.
“Amuwo-Odofin was won by Labour Party. Was there voter intimidation there? If there was voter intimidation all over Lagos State, there is no way they would have won that local government, and that local government is very big. The Labour Party also recorded victory in some other polling units outside of Amuwo Odofin. Besides, there are 13,325 polling units in Lagos State. We recorded not very serious glitches in less than one percent of the entire polling units and you are telling me that, that election was not good? How good can an election be?” he asked.,
SIGNED
GBOYEGA AKOSILE
CHIEF PRESS SECRETARY
02 APRIL 2023
Obey ECOWAS judgments, end prosecutions for ‘cyberstalking’, SERAP tells Buhari
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to use his “good offices and leadership position to immediately enforce the judgment by the ECOWAS Court of Justice prohibiting prosecutions of anyone on the grounds of ‘insulting’ or ‘stalking’ public officials online.”
SERAP also urged him to “enforce and implement the ECOWAS Court judgment compelling your government to respect, protect and promote freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom.”
In a letter dated 1 April, 2023 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organization expressed “serious concerns about the shrinking civic space in the country as some state governors and government institutions are reportedly using the section 24 of the Cybercrime Act and other repressive laws to crackdown on anyone seeking to assert their human rights, and media freedom.”
SERAP said, “Many Nigerians and media houses continue to face threats simply for speaking out and seeking to peacefully exercise their human rights and carry out their professional duties. This situation is contrary to the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and the judgments by the ECOWAS Court.”
According to SERAP, “The immediate enforcement and implementation of the judgments by your government will be a victory for the rule of law, the right to freedom of expression and media freedom, including online.”
The letter, read in part: “These disturbing trends show the failure by your government to effectively comply with the country’s international obligations and the ECOWAS Court judgments on the Cybercrime Act and Twitter ban.”
“If the two judgments are not immediately enforced and implemented, SERAP will consider seeking a Writ of Execution from the ECOWAS Court, and asking the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government to impose sanctions on your government for non-compliance with these judgments.”
“By implementing the judgment, your government will be demonstrating Nigeria’s leadership within the ECOWAS sub-region, and sending a powerful message to other countries to embrace the rule of law and human rights.”
“The processes for the sanctions are provided for under the 2015 Supplementary Protocol, the 2012 Supplementary Act on Sanctions and the 1993 ECOWAS Revised Treaties. The sanctions may include judicial, economic and political sanctions.”
“Section 27 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties provides that, ‘A State party to a treaty may not invoke the provisions of its internal law as justification for its failure to perform the treaty.’”
“SERAP urges you to urgently send an executive bill to the National Assembly to repeal the provisions of Section 24 of the Cybercrime Act on the offence of ‘insulting or stalking public officials online’ by ensuring the deletion of the provisions from the Act, as ordered by the ECOWAS Court.”
“SERAP also urges you to direct Mr Abubakar Malami, SAN the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice to withdraw all charges of ‘insulting or stalking public officials online’ against activists, critics and journalists, ensure their release from unlawful detention, and pay adequate compensation to those who have faced unfair prosecutions on the basis of the unlawful provisions.”
“SERAP urges you to instruct Mr Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture and the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to immediately reverse the arbitrary and unlawful fine of N5 million imposed on Channels TV for allegedly violating the NBC code in a programme with the Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed.”
“Some of the troubling trends showing restrictions on freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom include the recent arbitrary detention of journalist Agba Jalingo for allegedly publishing an article that was deemed ‘insulting’ to Elizabeth Ayade, the sister-in-law of Cross River Governor, Ben Ayade.”
“Another case involves Ekene Obinali of Umucheke, a traditional ruler in Imo State who was reportedly arrested for allegedly sharing a post on a WhatsApp platform which is said to be critical of Governor Hope Uzodinma.”
“Nnamdi Chude, a social media influencer, was also reportedly arrested for cyberstalking allegedly over a tweet he posted on electoral violence in Anambra State.”
“In Rivers State, three lawyers representing Tonye Cole of the All Progressives Congress were reportedly arrested and detained for preparing a petition against the outcome of the Rivers governorship election. The lawyers are Jerry Aondo, Dr Sobere Nelson, and Odum Eyiba.”
“The National Broadcasting Code (NBC) also arbitrarily imposed an unlawful fine of N5 million on Channels Television for allegedly violating the NBC code in a programme with the Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed.”
“In the first judgment in the suit number ECW/CCJ/APP/09/19 brought by SERAP, the Court ordered your government to repeal section 24 of Cybercrime Act by deleting the provisions, consistent with Nigeria’s obligation under Article 1 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.”
“The ECOWAS Court ruled that Section 24 is inconsistent and incompatible with Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Nigeria is a state party.”
“The unlawful provisions of section 24 of the Cybercrime Act among others criminalise sending or causing to be sent an ‘offensive, insulting or annoying’ message via a computer system.”
“In the second judgment in the suit No ECW/CCJ/APP/23/21 brought by SERAP and 176 concerned Nigerians, the Court ordered your government to respect and ensure freedom of expression, access to information and media freedom, consistent with Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
“The two judgments mean that your government has the obligation to ensure that state governors and government institutions do not use section 24, other repressive laws, and law enforcement agencies to target, harass, intimidate, arbitrarily arrest and detain people simply for peacefully exercising their human rights.”
“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right and the full enjoyment of this right is central to achieving individual freedom and to developing democracy. It is not only the cornerstone of democracy, but indispensable to a thriving civil society.”
“SERAP notes that Article 15(4) of the ECOWAS Treaty makes the Judgment of the Court binding on Member States, including Nigeria. Also, Article 19(2) of the 1991 Protocol provides that the decisions of the Court shall be final and immediately enforceable.”
“Furthermore, non-compliance with the judgment of the Court can be sanctioned under Article 24 of the Supplementary Protocol of the ECOWAS Court, and Article 77 of the ECOWAS Treaty.”
Kolawole Oluwadare
SERAP Deputy Director
2/4/2023
Lagos, Nigeria
Emails: info@serap-nigeria.org; news@serap-nigeria.org
Twitter: @SERAPNigeria
Website: www.serap-nigeria.org
For more information or to request an interview, please contact us on: +2348160537202