A coalition of five northern-based civil society groups has mounted a joint defence of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, rejecting last week’s demand by 56 organisations—including SERAP and HEDA—that he resign over the 2021 conviction of former electoral officer Prof Peter Ogban.
In a counter press conference whose communique was released Thursday, the groups declared, “We note with serious concern the recent joint press statement issued by a coalition of 56 Civil Society Organisations…calling for the resignation of the President of the Senate…based on the judicial conviction of Professor Peter Ogban over the 2019 senatorial elections…facts have been grossly distorted to malign the Senate President.”
The coalition comprises Arewa Revival Project, Society for Advancement of Credible Leadership Ideas and Observation, Mass Integration for Peace Initiative in Nigeria, Arewa Youth Development Forum and National Youth Mobilisation for Good Leadership.
The statement, signed by Muttaka Ibrahim, Dr Johnny Benjamin, Abdullahi Argungu, Ismail Hassan and Bawa Arah, argued that public commentary has inverted the facts of the 2019 Akwa Ibom North West poll
Facts have been grossly distorted to malign the Senate President…Several media outlets, commentators, and even some lawyers have pushed a distorted version of events, suggesting that Akpabio was declared the winner of a rigged election. However, court documents and verified reports…tell a completely different story,” the statement read.
Their defence comes in response to a joint press statement by 56 CSOs, including the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project and the Human and Environmental Development Agenda, which cited the 2021 conviction of Professor Peter Ogban over the 2019 Akwa Ibom North-West senatorial elections in calling for Akpabio’s resignation.
The northern coalition cited court records revealing that Ogban, the then returning officer, announced PDP candidate Chris Ekpenyong as winner, while cancelling more than 61,000 votes from Akpabio’s Essien Udim stronghold.
Both the election tribunal and the Court of Appeal later nullified the result for “proven malpractice” and ordered a rerun in the affected local government. The Appeal Court last month upheld Ogban’s three-year sentence for falsifying figures.
“Akpabio was a victim, not a beneficiary, of electoral fraud,” the coalition insisted, adding, “Prof Ogban rigged the election for his opponent, not for him.”
The groups cited court rulings to support the coalition’s claims.
“The Court of Appeal, in November 2019, nullified the election and ordered a rerun in Essien Udim after establishing that Ogban had manipulated results against Akpabio. This decision was widely reported, including in Punch newspaper with the headline ‘Akpabio wins appeal, court orders rerun in LG,’” the statement said.
The statement further cited the March 2021 conviction of Prof. Ogban by a High Court in Akwa Ibom State for falsifying election results to favour the PDP candidate.
The coalition emphasised that the appeal court upheld the conviction, affirming that the fraudulent acts were perpetrated against Akpabio’s interest.
It said, “It is ironic and unjust that the same man who was robbed of his mandate is now being accused of benefiting from fraud.
This narrative is being pushed by commentators and activists who, unfortunately, have not bothered to consult the court judgments or certified true copies of the rulings.”
It called on Nigerians to resist the spread of disinformation, saying “democracy is undermined when falsehoods are allowed to thrive. We must insist on fact-based reporting and hold commentators accountable when they mislead the public.”
The coalition also said, “To accuse him [Akpabio] falsely of electoral misconduct not only insults the judiciary but also disrespects the democratic process.
“Before jumping to conclusions, Nigerians—especially journalists and lawyers—must read court documents and verify facts. Democracy suffers when false narratives overshadow the truth,” it added.
0 Comments