Prof Mohammed Bello, a former PDP governorship aspirant who has since decamped to the All Progressives Congress (APC) is averring that the GCE certificate presented to INEC by the PDP candidate is a forgery.
In a suit before Hon Justice Edward Andow of the Kaduna State High Court, the plaintif and PDP flagbear, Hon Ashiru prays the court for damages of N100m for injuries he suffered as a result of the said allegations and an order compelling the defendant to retract his allegations and apologise and a perpetual restraining order preventing him from further continuing in the act of defamation.
But Prof. Bello, the defendant and APC campaign DG Candidate is rather reinforcing the allegations, insisting that Ashiru had presented a GCE with a name that conflicts with his known names and subsequent certificates and was therefore involved in forgery.
In a litigation reminiscent of the suit that led to the voiding of the 2019 Bayelsa Governorship election won by David Lyon of the APC as a result of certificates presented by his running mate Dr. Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, the defendant is urging the Court is to hold that the PDP candidate presented a false certificate to INEC based on the conflict of names in between the GCE, his name subsequent certificates and even the name “Isah Mohammed Ashiru” on the INEC firm and which has been his name in all his years of public service and several election contests.
In his statement of claim, however the Hon Asiru (plantiff) is alleging that Prof Bello who contested the 2019 PDP primaries with him and was defeated which led to his cross carpeting to the APC made the allegation out of sheer malice and bitterness.
Led by his lawyer Mr Emmanuel Toro, Hon Ashiru averred that Prof Bello at press conference and in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service deliberately and maliciously made the disparaging allegations to the effect that his (Ashiru’s) GCE O’Level is forged.
Hon Ashiru maintained that the said words were defamatory in their plain and ordinary meanings and had therefore thoroughly disparaged his reputation as a governorship candidate and an upright and responsible citizen who has built his good name overtime.
He presented to the court copies of a 1980 GCE O’Level certificate, diplomas from the Hassan Usman Katsina Polytechnic, Kaduna Polytechnic and a masters degree in Public Policy and Administration from Bayero University Kano among several certificates, claiming that the allegation of forgery against him by the defendant was false and malicious to lower his acceptability among the electorates of Kaduna State.
Beside Ashiru avers that Prof Bello made the statements maliciously “in that it was meant to advance the defendant’s relevance and acceptance in his new political party (APC) while affecting the plaintiff’s reputation negatively…thereby diminishing his chances of becoming Governor of Kaduna State.”
He therefore urged the court that apart from an order compelling the defendant to pay damages of N100m, further orders compelling him to retract his defamatory/libelous statement by publishing retractions in the social, print and electronic media and a perpetual injunction from further defamatory utterances was required.
However Prof. Bello represented Auta Maisamari Esq is pleading justification and insisting that the paintif was not entitled to any damages whatsoever as the statement was a true and accurate representation of the submissions the said plaintif made to INEC
He insisted that the plaintif not only presented false school certificate to INEC but also lied severally in almost all depositions he made in INEC form CFOO1.
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He pointed out that the 1980 GCE claimed by the plaintiff displays the name of Mohammed Ashiru different from all other certificates which dispaly Isah Mohammed Ashiru or several other variations which are not and cannot be said to be the same with the name Mohammed Ashiru displayed in GCE O’ Level he submitted to INEC.
He said the plaintif presented no evidence to INEC or in the documents pleaded before the court that he was indeed the same person in the subsequent certificates and in the forms submitted to INEC which shows different variations of the names Isah Mohammed Ashiru or Ashiru Mohammed Isah or Mohammed Isah Ashiru or Isa Mohammed Ashiru or Isa M Ashiru or Isa Ashiru .
He maintained that in the absence of an affidavit or any other evidence to draw a nexus between these names, the court must hold that the PDP candidate Isah Mohammed Ashiru cannot be said to be the same person referred to as Mohammed Ashiru captured in the 1980 GCE O’Level presented to INEC and therefore an assertion that he has no certificate cannot amount defamation.
Relying on several precedences including the recent case of PDP vs Degi-Eremienyo (2021)9 NWLR( pt 1781) at Page 290 to 291 and Modibbo vs Usman (2020) 3 NWLR the defendant maintained that it was already settled in law that there’s presumption of fraud when the names in documents purportedly belonging to one person are varying and are conflicting .
In PDP vs Degi-Eremienyo the case that aborted the governorship election of the David Lyon of the APC hours to his swearing in the Supreme Court had held that Lyon’s running mate one Dr Biobarakuma Wanagagha Degi-Eremienyo had forged his certificates because of variations in the names of the various documents he presented.
” …..the 1st respondent did not explain why in 1990, inspite of alleged error in 1984, Rivers State University of Science and Technology still inscribed the name: ‘Degi, Biobarakuma’ on the certificate at page 62 and not Biobarakuma Wanagagha Degi, his name at birth or Biobarakuma Degi appearing on his 1990 declaration of age.
” It is clearly fraudulent for one person to allegedly bear several names that he used variously, chamelonically to suit the changing environment. ”
Supporters of the two parties are keenly following developments in the litigation as it is believed the ruling of the court will be of significance to the election . If the court agrees with the plaintif that he had been defamed the issue of his basic qualifications which the APC is obvious planning to bring up in subsequent electoral litigation will be deemed to have been favorably resolved but if on the contrary the court accepts the defence of justification by defendant it would portend grave consequences for the candidature of the plaintif.
The case has been adjourned to November 15 for exchange of briefs of arguments.