 The inspector general of police, Usman Baba, has ordered the commissioner of police on an election duty in Adama State, Mohamed Badi, to withdraw from the state with immediate effect. The ITP also ordered that the CP in charge of Gumbay State, Ita Mekwa, should immediately proceed to Adama State for election security of the kindly contested supplementary governorship poll. The force public relations officer, Lumiyua Dijabi, made the revelation while addressing pressmen on Tuesday in Abuja, arting that the IG was committed to a free and fair electoral process. Also, the independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, says it is demanding the immediate investigation and possible prosecution of the resident Electoral Commissioner for Adama State, Udu Ari, who illegally announced Aisha Dahiru of the All Progressive Congress APC as winner of the humanitarian elections in the state. The commission said Mr. Ari's action was an usurpation of the powers of the Returning Officer, empowering them by law to collate and announce the results of the election. Joining us to discuss this is Jidio Logung, a legal practitioner, and Daya Kayadi, who is a political analyst. Thank you so much, gentlemen, for joining us. Good evening. So happy to meet you. Great. Good evening. Let's start with the fact that INEC is demanding an investigation to hold immediately, even though the police has immediately removed the CP that was on duty in Adama State. Many people would say that the CP was only going with the flow. He did not necessarily understand what he was doing. But Barista Logung, I'm going to start with you. Let's talk about the law. I'm sure the police act clearly states the duties of every law enforcement officer. But again, many of us talk about the electoral act as amended. But many people have no knowledge, including law enforcement, as to what it says and what their duties are. Could this have been the case of the CP in Adama State? Okay. Let's specifically isolate this Adamawa situation. What the resident Electoral Commissioner has done is contrary to section 120 of section 4 of the Electoral Act 2022 as amended that says is any person who announces or publishes an election result, knowing the same to be false, omits and offends, and is liable to imprisonment for 36 months. And definitely, the revoc is expected to realize that at the point he proceeded to forcefully announce the results, results were still been expected of about 10 government areas. Apart from that, the Electoral Act mandates the returning officer, not the resident Electoral Commissioner, to announce such results. And if we now come to the issue of the Commissioner of Police, who escorted the... Mr Logo, are you there or have we lost you? Mr Logo, are you there? Can you hear me? All right. Let's quickly go to diet. Mr Kaede, go ahead. I'd like for you to pitch in while we get to Mr Logo. Yes. Let me continue. Let me go from where Mr Logo thought, as he was saying, is returning officer that is supposed to announce the results, and especially when we are expecting results from 10 local governments. Now, for even the Commissioner of Police to add escorted direct to announce that results, he cannot tell me that he is not aware of what the law says, as he does have a position as well as the Electoral Laws. But let me tell you this, and frankly speaking, for Nigerians to understand this, in my dialect, which I will see interpret, let me tell you, don't worry about me, because I don't know what you mean. That is to say, the small flies that flies on top of the water, it's not just dancing on top of the water. There are some invisible drummers underneath the water that are drumming for those flies to be dancing on top of water. Let me tell you, not just about the IGP as other, the deployment of that particular Commissioner of Police to have been a Commissioner of Police, it's not a small joke, you must have known the laws of the land concerning activities that are operating, especially Electoral activities. We don't want that Commissioner of Police to redeploy just a load, we want it prosecuted and we want appropriate political measures to be met, else, else, Nigerians, we look at it as pay yes, it has done what it was being asked to do. We have seen series of policemen in this country running foul of our laws, of our rules and the rules of engagement. The moment they are being transferred, when they are transferred, they will say, yes, they have been transferred and that will be the end of it. Nigeria today is different from Nigeria on yesterday. We want that particular policeman to be brought to boot and not only that, even the wreck that had gone outside is jurisdiction to go and announce results should not just, should not only be prosecuted as a Nigerian is being demanded, we want him prosecuted and we want him to be punished accordingly. Okay. Now, let us, let us, let us go back to you, let me just quickly, let me just quickly go back to Baisal logo, Baisal logo there is, of course, we know that Senator Aisha had a next party application marked FHCABJ 510 2023. She applied for the leave of court to allow her to seek an order of prohibition and this is to remove the court for the purpose of being set aside the administrative decision of the first respondent made April 16, 2023, in other words, she is asking that the court prevent INEC, which is the first respondent, they say, she says that they want INEC to be prevented from taking any further steps, okay, towards declaration of the winner, which INEC has already done by the way, and we saw that the court had thrown that out. Now, Baisal logo, let us go to a video that we got from outside the court and then you help us explain what this exparte motion is and if it does hold and it was, even though the court has moved to April 26, but let us take a listen and then, of course, you will interpret this for us. An application for leave for my lot to review, we call it judicial review for my lot to examine the pronouncement of INEC on the declaration made with respect to the election conducted at the master stage. This is an exparte application, we are not expecting anybody, as you can see, when the council to the third respondent announces appearance, my lot refused to take his appearance because it is by the leave of the court that the action will be initiated. So you don't just be a busybody and appear before the court. What are we looking before the court is whether INEC can set aside a pronouncement made by one of its staff. We are not here to argue election. We don't have anything election before the sub-court. What we are trying to do before the sub-court is for the court to make a pronouncement as to whether looking at section 149 of the electoral act, which says whatever action taken by INEC can only be set aside by either election petition tribunal or a court of competent jurisdiction. So an INEC staff starting to make a declaration whether legitimate or illegitimate, the right thing to do is to approach the tribunal. It is only the tribunal that will determine whether the act is legitimate or illegitimate. So that is the reason why we are in this court and all my lot ask for is we should address him on the jurisdiction of the court and we are gladly taking that and by the grace of God by in two days our address will be ready before the court. So Barysar Logo, over to you. INEC has already declared Govno Fintiri as Govno-elect. His certificate of return has been given to him as we speak and many have argued that what happened was illegal in the first place and so this does not even give room for this exparte motion but you are the lawyer. Help us explain this. I must commend the judiciary for not stepping on that slippery ground of entertaining that exparte motion request from that lawyer. You see and it is perceived as part of the grant plan to subvert the process of law because you heard him quoting a particular section of the electoral act 2022 that is only the election tribunal thought of content addiction but it does not apply in this situation. In fact if you look at section 6 of section 2 of the electoral act 2022 as amended it says that the residence electoral commissioner is answerable to the commission INEC and INEC came out to declare that the announcement by the REC was null, void and suspended the coalition of the results thereafter which later resumed and when you say something is null and void I have been issued in law it means you have no foundation to build up and this issue of seeking exparte order has been dealt with in this country that in the interest of justice and like a law rightly mentioned justice should not only be done but clearly seem to have been done. So this is a plan that has failed in its entitles by the way the REC doesn't have the legal mandate to declare the result of the election is the returning officer that has that mandate. So that is why I am joining those who are demanding that the REC, the commissioner of police and all those involved in these ugly incidents should be thoroughly investigated prosecuted and let there be consequences and for those who may be wondering why INEC is writing since the president is the president that is responsible for the appointment and removal of president electoral commissioners but having said that INEC has a duty to deal with them in situations like this and that is why INEC has been asked to step out of the office and for the secretary to take over so we should not in any way undoing this picture of portraying Nigeria as not having the appropriate legal framework for our processes. This is an apparent abuse of procedures so I am joining those who are calling for the investigation possible prosecution of these accused persons even though we have what we call the resumption of innocence under our constitution this is a flagrant abuse of procedures and the attempt to rope in the judiciary claiming that once the result has been declared it is the judiciary that can obtain it. I must commend the judiciary for throwing away that application it has no space at all in justice. I hope that you can be time timely. Many have queried the processes involved in picking these people who finally become resident electoral commissioners and we know recently before the elections the last batch of recs that were confirmed on the floor of the National Assembly there were many questions raised about a couple of them. Do we ever see the independence of our electoral commission sometime in the future sometime I mean I'm talking about the close future not talking about 50 years from now will the independent electoral commission be independent enough and does do we need to have a president appointing these people quickly. Yes you see we have been talking about independence of not only even INEC of so many other institutions in this country of which INEC is part of it and these are the things that are going to be played out when you don't give such a commission independence to be able to appoint their real officers for instance look at this look at this red that is putting us into this mess now information information is even in town that it was alleged of some practices where it was before what am I saying this how much of Mr. Kaidi I'm so sorry I think that we've lost connection with you and we've been making some of these appointees because understand where they are coming from to be able to understand where they are coming from okay apologies apologies Mr. Kaidi I'm so sorry we're having connection issues with you but we're also out of time I want to say thank you Gido Logan is a legal practitioner Daya Kaidi is a political analyst gentlemen I hope that we can have this conversation again and have more time to you know delve into other aspects but I want to say thank you for being part of the conversation thank you to God bless Nigeria all right thank you very much God bless Nigeria all right that's it on the show tonight tomorrow is another day we'll be back talking more on matters arising on the Nigerian political scene and sometimes we delve outside the Nigerian scene to bring you politics I am Mary Anna Konzi tomorrow have a good evening