Growing apprehension has enveloped Bayelsa State over the pending election case at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt involving the governor, Timipre Sylva and the candidate of the Action Congress, Ebitimi Ambgare.
Sunday Independent
learnt that the governor and his supporters have been expressing worries over the likely outcome of the case which ruling the court reserved till a later date after the counsel to all the parties concluded their address.
More concerned, according to our sources, are Sylva�s aides who are also said to be panicky.
The concern is that should the court rule against the governor, he would automatically vacate his office with his deputy, Peremobowei Ebebi, to allow for a fresh election.
The 1999 constitution provides that in such an instance, the Speaker would have to take over the leadership of the state until a fresh election is conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
There were even speculations that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been meeting over the matter.
Sources said some of the party officials were working on the theory of a possibility of dropping Sylva as the party�s candidate in the event that he loses the case and a fresh election is to be conducted.
But some others, it was also gathered, sounded differently. The argument of those in this class is that it would be impossible to replace him at that point, since the issue of the party�s candidacy had already been settled before the April 14,2007 election.
Sunday Independent
learnt that some lawyers had already been mandated to study the possibility of getting another candidate to fly the party�s flag if the appeal court�s ruling does not favour Sylva.
It was also learnt that two serving senators are being considered by some of the opposing leading groups within the PDP in the state. Their reasoning, according to some party chieftains, is that either of the two senators would make a better governor.
At the sitting of the Appeal Court penultimate week, the court had prevented the governor�s moves to scuttle the matter. His counsel, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo, SAN, was to file a motion seeking to strike out some of the grounds of Amgbare�s notice of appeal and reply brief.
But he was stopped midway by the presiding judge, Justice S.A Ibiyoye who demanded to know if the reliefs being sought in the proposed motion were not included in his original brief.
A long drawn legal battle was to ensue thereafter between the lawyers, but Sylva lost out in the end, as the judges insisted that the appeal must be heard.
When the court decided that it had the powers to hear the appeal and urged Amgbare�s counsel, Femi Atoyebi, SAN to go ahead, he told the court that, “not a single Form EC8A(result sheets) was tendered” before the Election Petition Tribunal in evidence or admitted in evidence during hearing at the lower Tribunal.
“It is trite law that a valid election can only be said to have been held with the production in evidence of Form EC8A.”
The position was however punctured by Oyetibo who argued that the said forms were to be tendered in evidence at the lower Tribunal, but the appellants objected to it. The court did not give a specific date for judgment on the matter.
Since last Monday when the appeal court met and chose ” a later date” as judgement day, top government officials have been very jittery.
Some of the governor�s aides were said to have engaged in prayer sessions so that the judgment would turn out in favour of their boss.
On Friday, this newspaper called the governor�s special adviser on political matters, George Fente but he did not pick the calls. He did not also respond to the text message that was sent to his MTN line.
Sylva�s Chief Press Secretary, Ebimo Amungo however said he was “not competent to speak on it as he was not the Information Commissioner or Political Adviser.”
But the governor�s adviser on media, Nath Egba said in a telephone chat that there was no cause for alarm and that they are confident of victory at the appeal court.
He said the governor�s lawyers had canvassed a good case at the court and “there is no reason for us to panic. If anybody thinks we are panicky here, that is the person�s imagination.”
Regardless, he said that the government is not resting on its oars, because it is natural for anybody who has such a case pending to be up and doing. To him, the lawyers had done their homework in the court and are waiting for the judgment.
On his part, Amgbare said that the judgment would be in his favour and that he is not anxious about the outcome.
“I am not desperate to be governor of Bayelsa State. I�m just a part of the new move to bring about change in our body polity.”
He also claimed he has been receiving threat calls over the matter, but added “I had made up my mind to go the whole hog for the good of our people.”
“As disturbing as they are, we cannot be stopped by such threats. My campaign organisation is reviewing the threat calls and messages. We will channel all complaints to the appropriate quarters,” he said.