.Why my copy had watermark –Tinubu
.Umahi urges Obi not to approach Supreme Court
Labour Party has faulted the appearance of the “watermark” of the legal team of the President on the Certified True Copies (CTC).
A statement issued by the Labour Party’s National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh urged the PEPC to be clear on the controversy in the interest of teeming Nigerians.
The statement read in part, “Consequent upon the revelation that Certified True Copies (CTC) of the recent judgment by the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) had an imprint, “Tinubu Presidential Legal Team” (TPLT) as its header, Nigerians are curious about such happenstance that has inevitably generated storm and controversy.
“The Labour Party was very disturbed by the delay in releasing the judgment expeditiously, only to be confronted with this befuddlement. The public is equally at pains trying to comprehend what is happening.
“The onus of explaining and dousing the unfolding controversy rests on the PEPC and the TPLT, the imprint owners. Clearly, the header is not a watermark. We note that only some of the petitioners received the same version.
“In a highly contentious case with dire national interest and implications, confirming that the PEPC did not confer any advantage, rights, or privileges to any party is imperative. This development must be cleared up quickly to avoid conjectures and the belief that something untoward happened. This cannot be the case of another glitch.
According to Obiora Ifoh, “The unsigned and undated statement issued purportedly by a senior counsel on behalf of the Tinubu Legal Team is misconceived and empty. The senior counsel claimed that the header is a watermark! It is not and can never be. Typically, a watermark is a faint imprint or design made on some papers during production and which can be seen when held up to the light. It helps in checking the genuineness of the paper.
The senior counsel is responsible for substantiating his claims and should not pass the buck to innocent parties. We of the Labour Party place it on record that the counsel who collected the judgment on behalf of our party and our candidate did so long after a representative of the Tinubu Legal Team.
“Meanwhile, we call on the PEPC and APC to come clean on the CTC imprint and disclose whose imprimatur is inscribed on the entire judgment. Nigerians deserve the right to know and are demanding urgent answers.
.Why my copy had watermark –Tinubu
Meanwhile, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu through his legal team has explained why his copy of the Presidential Elections Petition Tribunal (PEPT) judgement had a watermark.
The Tinubu Presidential Legal Team (TPLT) made the clarification after the watermarked copy shared by the president’s team stirred up debate on social media, with some Nigerians alleging a sinister move.
Responding to the allegation via a statement made available on Saturday, TPLT coordinator, Babatunde Ogala, said they watermarked their copy of the judgement after collecting it from the Court of Appeal before circulating the scanned copies to members of their team.
The statement reads in part: “After the delivery of judgement in the three election petitions by the Court of Appeal on September 6, 2023, the Court directed its registry to make physical copies of same available on September 7, 2023.
“Accordingly, the Tinubu Presidential Legal Team applied for a Certified True Copy of the said judgement and paid the prescribed fee.
“In fact, the representative of the PDP collected the first copy that was made available by the registry.
“On collecting our own copy, we immediately scanned and watermarked it with the inscription “Tinubu Presidential Legal Team ‘TPLT’” before circulating the scanned soft copies to the lawyers in our team.
“The Certified True Copy issued to us and other parties in the petitions by the registry does not contain the said inscription, and any insinuation to the contrary is untrue.
“Counsel for the petitioners will also appreciate the fact that the insinuations being circulated in some quarters are untrue, unkind, unfair, and unfortunate, as they have the same certified copies of the judgement as we have.”
On Wednesday, September 6, PEPT upheld the victory of President Bola Tinubu in the 2023 general election.
After the verdict, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar and his Labour Party (LP) counterpart, Peter Obi rejected the judgement and headed to the Supreme Court to reclaim their mandates.
.Umahi urges Obi not to approach Supreme Court
However, All Progressives Party (APC) chieftain and Minister of Works, David Umahi, has urged the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, to accept the verdict of the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal.
The former governor of Ebonyi State gave the advice while speaking to journalists shortly after paying a courtesy visit to his successor, Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru at the new Government House, Centenary City, Abakaliki, the capital of Ebonyi State..
Speaking during the briefing, he told Obi not to contest the judgement which validated the victory of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the February 25 general election at the Supreme Court because he is likely to lose again.
He said: “I advised him (Obi) not to go to appeal. I am not a lawyer. My son here is a lawyer. He has interpreted the judgement, and he has left no hope for any appeal.”
Umahi went on to solicit the support of the people of the South-East geopolitical zone for the Tinubu administration.
“Let the South East come together and support the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration; he made us the number one minister, even when we didn’t vote very well for him,” he stated.
Umahi, who declared that “Tinubu will be a divine President,” added: “Before now, God told me that Tinubu will be Nigeria’s President. I prayed, and God answered. It was tough here in the South East, but through the grace of God, we made it.”
While commending Gov Nwifuru for the empowerment and other developmental achievements witnessed in the state in his 100 days in office, Umahi vowed to support him to ensure that the state moves forward.
“We didn’t make a mistake in bringing Gov Nwifuru. There are former governors who cannot go back to their homes. but I am in my home. I am very happy with the way I met him,” he further stated.
