Atiku, Obi absent as Supreme Court begins proceedings on petitions against Tinubu’s victory

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi, the candidate of the Labour Party, are not present at the Supreme Court, Abuja.

The court is scheduled to rule on the petitions against the tribunal (Appeal
court) ruling upholding President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the presidential election held on February 25, 2023.

The president’s chief of staff, Femi Gbajabiamila; the federal capital territory minister, Nyesom Wike; the national chairman of the APC, Abdullahi Ganduje; the national security adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; and the national chairman of the labour party, Julius Abure, are all in the courtroom.

READ ALSO:APC, PDP, LP chairmen, Wike, others storm Supreme Court for final verdict on Tinubu’s election victory

Meanwhile, proceedings have begun with Justice John Okoro saying it is crystal clear that the law of Nigeria does not allow anyone to adduce additional evidence on appeal.

He stated this in reply to a bid by Atiku’s legal team to file fresh evidence from Chicago State University against Tinubu.

He also said the jurisdiction of the court is at the foundation of adjudication, adding that jurisdiction is the fulcrum upon which a court’s decisions are based.

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Freedom of Information Act and The Limits of Press Freedom, By Mack Ogbamosa – THISAGE

        Introduction  A free, independent, and vibrant press is one of the strongest pillars of any democratic society. It is against this background that most democratic countries  make constitutional provisions for a free press . Others even go further to enact specific laws to make affairs of governments freely available to the public. Currently, there are more than  130 countries in the world that have free press laws. They include Sweden, United States, France, South Africa and Nigeria. Nigeria did not only make  constitutional provisions in Sections 22 and 39(1) of the 1999 Constitution ( as amended) but also went ahead to enact the Freedom of Information Act  in 2011. Section 22 of the 1999  Constitution states: “ “The press, radio, television and other agencies of the mass media  shall at all times be free to uphold the fundamental objectives contained in this chapter( ie Chapter II) and uphold the responsibility and accountability of the Government to the people”  Section 39(1)  of same Constitution states : “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference” ..  To complement these constitutional provisions, Section 1 (1) of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) states “Notwithstanding anything contained in any other Act, law or regulation, the right of any person to access or request information, whether or not contained in any written form, which is in the custody or possession of any public official, agency or institution howsoever described, is established.” while Section  2(2), states that: “A public institution shall ensure the proper organization and maintenance of all information in its custody in a manner that facilitates public access to such information”  Primary Purpose of FOIA  According to the Act, its primary purpose is to make information about public records freely available to every Nigerian in the public interest. …

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