The best-graduating student for the 2021/2022 set in Lagos State University (LASU), Aminat Yusuf, says she settled for garri and groundnuts for a larger part of her undergraduate days.

Yusuf said the right mentoring by lecturers, hard work, and God’s guidance were major factors for her success.

Yusuf, an Edo indigene, finished with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 5.00 (First Class Honours).

She said the factors helped her to be the best-graduating student of her set and in LASU’s 40 years of existence.

Yusuf said the financial situation of her parents, coupled with the fact that she is the first child put a lot of burden on her. “I called for financial support only under compelling circumstances, after I have exhausted all options.

“As a result, I experienced some serious financial constraints during my two plus four years stay at LASU.

“In 200 Level, second semester, just because I needed to get a browsing phone and get trained in computer skills, I saved up about 90 per cent of my feeding allowance.

“For the most part of my days as an undergraduate, I lived in the university premises, because I had no hostel, and going home every day would have been absolutely inconvenient

“The school had a stand-by security and standard lighting system, so, it was safe for me; my major challenge was having to attend lectures every day in a neatly ironed white and black dress, acting like everything was perfect,” Yusuf told NAN on Wednesday.

Speaking on her first day in LASU for the physical screening, towards admission into a diploma in law programme, the best-graduating student said: “I remember fantasising about achieving a remarkable feat in this prestigious university.

“I first did Diploma in Law programme, which runs for two years, in which students are taught compulsory law courses, with a view to offering direct entry admission to top class students.

“I studied really hard and prayed so fervently towards achieving excellence; I graduated from the programme with a CGPA of 4.98 and this was the best in my set.

“The possibility of graduating with such a grade motivated the yearning to graduate with a perfect CGPA at the undergraduate level.”

She called on well-meaning Nigerians to invest in the education sector and lauded the passing into law of the Student Loan Act in the country.

She added: “I believe this will no doubt be of immeasurable value to our education system.

“While I struggled financially through my education, I don’t desire such hardship for students coming behind us, especially the female students.”

Yusuf, however, appreciated the LASU management for sustaining the congenial and conducive environment that contributed to her excellent performance.

She said: “I am deeply grateful to my parents for their sacrifice, unwavering support towards my education.

“My parents really motivated me from their different careers; my father is a journalist while my mother is a businesswoman.

“Thanks to my faculty lecturers for their reflex of excellence, commitment and dedication in teaching us to be the best.

“I will like to use this opportunity to launch a YouTube channel tagged, ‘Learning Law with Aminat’, with a goal of giving back to society through my immediate community.”

Former militant leader and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ebikabowei Victor-Ben popularly known as Boyloaf, has promised to support Mallam Nuhu Ribadu as the National Security Adviser (NSA) to end oil theft in the Niger Delta region.

He said Ribadu’s appointment will help the federal government in addressing the security challenges in Nigeria.

The ex-militants’ leader, who commended President Bola Tinubu over the appointment of Ribadu, said the new NSA will help revamp the security architecture of the nation.

Victor-Ben, who was the Secretary of the Special Duties Committee, South-South for the Tinubu – Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, described Tinubu as a visionary leader for choosing Ribadu as NSA, having witnessed his capacity during his days as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured that palliatives to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal were being worked out.

He spoke during an interactive session with Nigerians resident in France and neighbouring European countries on the sidelines of the New Global Financing Pact Summit in the French capital, Paris.

The President in his inaugural speech said the subsidy era was gone because there was no budgetary allocation for it.

On how he convinced Organised Labour to shelve the planned protest over removal of subsidy, he said: “You want money increase in palliative, transportation what are you protesting about? Are you sharing part of the subsidy? if you protest, I will join you and protest and they stopped. No protest.

“Palliative we will get but we have to save the money in order to embark on palliatives,” he said.

Following a downpour in the Federal Capital Territory on Friday, no fewer than 116 buildings have been submerged by flood in the affected areas.

Residents of Trademore Estate along the Lugbe-Airport axis lamented their losses as the floods left a trail of destruction in its wake.

What began as light showers around 8am turned into a relentless downpour, catching residents off guard.

The sudden deluge of water overwhelmed the drainage systems, which were ill-equipped to handle such a volume of water, leading to a rapid rise in floodwaters that engulfed the entrance of the estate.

One of the victims, who spoke to our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said he narrowly escaped being carried away by the waves, adding that his car and a batch of bread meant for delivery that morning, could not be salvaged.

“Thank God I can swim. I nearly drowned. There was also someone in front of me who was struggling but I do not know what happened to him. It was after I got to that point that people were able to help me,” he added.

Some residents, however, blamed the government for the perennial flooding in the area.

A resident, Segun Akin, said, “I am a major stakeholder here. I have been here for 10 to 11 years. The volume of water that came into Trademore five years ago is not the same volume that is coming into Trademore this year. We tried to talk to the government about looking at the volume of water that comes into Trademore from the Galadimawa axis. My house is just at the back of the canal. I have never seen such a volume of water before coming into Trademore. As long as that water from the Galadimawa axis is not controlled, there is no way it can be contained here.’’

Responding to the allegation, the Director General of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Dr Abass Idriss, said the government should instead be blamed for not clearing and demolishing the estate earlier, adding that the entire estate sat on a waterway.

Meanwhile, FEMA, in a statement signed by its Head of Public Affairs, Nkechi Isa, said no life was lost to the flood.

Isa, however, said a total of 116 houses were submerged.

The statement also dismissed reports on social media that a resident on the estate went missing in the floods.

Barely one week to Sallah, ram sellers at the Kara end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Friday lamented low sales, blaming the low patronage on the prevailing economic situation and the sudden increase in the cost of transporting the animals from the northern part of the country.

Similarly, some buyers told our correspondents that ram prices had gone up, lamenting that it might deny them the privilege of killing rams for the celebration.

Our correspondents spoke with some of them at the popular Kara market along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in the Obafemi-Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State, where many Muslim faithful lamented that as the festive day drew near, the possibility of them getting rams to kill was becoming slimmer.

A seller, Abdulrazaq Ibrahim said, “I get my rams from Adamawa State. Last year, I transported them with N600,000 but this year it is N1.6m. That is why the one of N90,000 last year has increased to N170,000 this year. The amount we spend bringing these rams here from the North is the reason they are so expensive this year and not many people can afford them.”

Another seller, Awwal Abdullahi, said, “I do not believe the removal of subsidy led to this increment. I sold over 1,500 rams to top government officials last year, but this year I have been selling two or three per day which I’m not happy with.

“I get my ram from Yobe State and I pay N500 on each ram for carrying them but it has increased to N950 this year. The size of the rams also is a factor. Last year, I carried them for N1m but this year it has increased to N1.8m. The least of my ram is N300,000.”

For Kunle Moshood, he said the high cost of fuel affected the business as transporters demanded more per ram.

He added, “Payment for transportation per ram last year was cheaper but this year is higher. The increment amounted to pay N1.5m compared to the N800, 000 we paid last year. I have not calculated the increase in price tags of their feeds such as: Soya beans, Kowa and Jusa which are exorbitant.”

The sellers said the increase in the price was responsible for the low sales.

Meanwhile, buyers lamented the increase cost of the rams.

One of the buyers, who preferred to be called Oluwagbenga for personal reasons, stated that the prices of rams were currently twice the amount they were sold last year.

He said, “It’s surprising that last year I bought two rams and each cost N80,000. Today, I came to the market to buy just one as I have heard the outrageous prices of ram. On getting to Kara, it has really increased as the seller told me he could only sell what I bought for N80,000 last year for N300,000 after haggling from N350,000.”

He added that the spike in the prices was as a result of the removal of fuel subsidy by the President Bola Tinubu which had also worsened inflation.

“I don’t believe the subsidy has affected the prices, is it a ram subsidy? Even if it’s getting high it shouldn’t be more than N100,000,” he added.

Another buyer, Sade Adelowo, corroborated Oluwagbenga’s position, saying, “I came from Ikotun and I encountered gridlocks. On getting here, I was shocked to hear the prices of rams. Surprisingly, the size of ram I bought for N60,000 last year, I begged to get it for N100,000 this year.”

Many of the buyers and sellers called on the Federal Government to quickly look into the hardship caused by the fuel subsidy removal.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured that palliatives to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal were being worked out.

He spoke during an interactive session with Nigerians resident in France and neighbouring European countries on the sidelines of the New Global Financing Pact Summit in the French capital, Paris.

The President in his inaugural speech said the subsidy era was gone because there was no budgetary allocation for it.

On how he convinced Organised Labour to shelve the planned protest over removal of subsidy, he said: “You want money increase in palliative, transportation what are you protesting about? Are you sharing part of the subsidy? if you protest, I will join you and protest and they stopped. No protest.

“Palliative we will get but we have to save the money in order to embark on palliatives,” he said.

Details Shortly…

…Buhari appointed ministers,  in his govt

•It’s now important they account for sources of their wealth and those of their families

•I’ll lead campaign against Tinubu if he derails

The National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF), Alhaji Yerima Shettima has said that despite the laudable moves Tinubu has made in less than one month in office as President, he was prepared to engage the administration if the government goes the wrong way.

In an interview with Saturday Vanguard, Shettima, also said past Ministers and their families should be brought to account for what they have done while in office and explain the sources of their wealth if the anti-corruption fight of Tinubu’s administration should be taken seriously. He also spoke on Asari Dokubo’s outburst about oil thieves, among other issues.

What is your take on President Bola Tinubu and what he has done so far?

So far, so good. In the last 20 days, we have seen actions and body language which have given hope, unlike the last eight years when, from the beginning, we thought President Buhari was going to perform magic. It took time before he appointed his ministers. We thought he was still consulting, looking for a different set of people, and the best brain, but the same characters that were there before came up even after six months, His administration ended up squashing the treasury and putting Nigeria in a huge debt.

Now, with the body language of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we can see some changes that we could not see in eight years.

In the previous government, Buhari made appointments and went to sleep even when the appointees failed. He pretended not to see them and there was massive corruption in his government. But now, with President Tinubu in the saddle, we can see the body language, especially from the CBN and the EFCC.

We hope that will continue. Nobody should be allowed to go free, anyone who is found wanting should be brought to book. We look forward to seeing him beyond the action on EFCC head. The past Ministers and their families should be brought to account for what they have done while in office and explain the source of their wealth.

Then we will take this government seriously in terms of fighting corruption. In terms of the economy, we have seen the body language too; the Wale Eduns, the Ribadus, who are young elements, very principled and serious-minded people. We could see the direction the President is going.

Today in the country, agitations are currently going down, and I hope he will capitalise on that and continue to do the right things. But if he goes the wrong way, truly, some of us will lead a campaign against his government. For now, I think he needs our support and let us give him the support to do the right thing.

The allegation made by Dokubo is weighty. Do you share the same view, also recalling that the President recently ordered the service chiefs to go after the oil thieves?

First of all, the issues Asari Dokubo raised are very fundamental and germane. The Dokubo I know does not raise any alarm when he is not sure of it. Don’t forget that the allegation he raised didn’t just start today. It only takes people with the courage to come out and say what he said. What he said is not different from what Tompolo said a few months ago. It is also not different from what Wike said in Rivers State that some security personnel are involved in bunkering and vandalisation. I trust him and I believe what he said. It is left to the man in charge, (President Tinubu) to take a decision. He needs to take a decision on that to stop the ugly trend.

I would also advise him to critically look at all sections of the country to unite all sections. He should look at the issue of security and corruption. Anyone found guilty should not go unpunished. He is also a victim of some allegations. He should prove to the world that he is not what some people think. Tinubu has nothing to lose. God has blessed him with everything he wanted. So, he will only be remembered for the good things he did.

Many in the North were against a Southerner being elected Senate President. With the emergence of Senator Akpabio as the Senate President, is the North satisfied with the leadership arrangement in the National Assembly?

As it is today, we have to be cautious of issues that will further divide the nation. The last government succeeded in creating more division. Tinubu is aware and mindful of that. His calculation was to have a Muslim as Vice President to get the North on his side, which paid off for him. No section will win an election to rule this country without the support of the North, so in that wise, you can’t allow another Muslim to take the position of the Senate President.

It will not work. I am a Northerner and I represent the northern interest, but in all honesty and fairness, and for Nigeria to be stable, that position would not go to the Muslims. We need the country to be stable so that agitation will be reduced so that the government can be focused and get the desired result. My view is to look inward and have the South East take up that position.

I don’t know the yardstick or parameters the political actors arrived at to bring South South to take the position. However, I know it is in the best interest of the country. Again, for peace and fairness, it is better to have a Southerner, a Christian take up the number three position. If there is no country, there won’t be any election and if there is no country, there won’t be anyone to govern. So, it is a clear indication of the demonstration of political will by the Tinubu administration to bring about unity in the country and to harness all our resources for a better society we can all be proud of.

It seems President Tinubu is disposed to having youths in major positions in his government. As Arewa Youth Leader, don’t you think experience also counts especially going by where we were coming from?

Those acclaimed experiences don’t know anything and they are the same characters who took us to where we are today. For me, it is time we had younger Nigerians who are digitally savvy in major positions. The so-called experience should support them. They should allow the younger ones to learn from the mistakes of the older ones that have not taken us anywhere.

I agree that not all of them have failed, but we can tap from those that have done well. The world has moved on, we have to move on too, we cannot get that from the older. His track record is that he is somebody who always believes in youth, harnessing the best brains and making them give him results, not because he knows it all, but because he believes in tapping from the younger brain to get results.

It is on record that what he has done, no political leader from the 1960s to date has achieved that in terms of empowering people and making them greater. I hope others will emulate him. God knows why He gave him this position and that is why he (Tinubu) should do more

-Says Financial system rotten under Emefiele

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has broken his silence on the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

He spoke during an interactive session with Nigerians resident in France and neighbouring European countries on the sidelines of the New Global Financing Pact Summit in the French capital, Paris.

The President said the nation’s financial system under the suspended Emefiele was rotten.

He said many Nigerians abroad were unable to send money to their relatives because of the multiple exchange rates, saying all that have become a thing of the past.

“Then the financial system was rotten. Few people making bags of our money and then you yourself, you stopped sending money home to our poor parents. Several windows… but that is gone now, is gone.

“The man (Emefiele) is in the hands of authorities, something is being done about that, they will sort themselves out.”  Tinubu said at his first Diaspora engagement with Nigerians living in France.

Tinubu’s comments come exactly two weeks after the suspended the former CBN chief to pave the way for the investigation of his office and the planned reforms in the financial sector, a statement from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation explained.

Emefiele was later arrested and is currently being detained by the Department of State Services as operatives combed his Lagos residence, where they reportedly recovered some vital documents.

The embattled Emefiele has since approached the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja to challenge his detention by the DSS.

Speaking further in France on Friday, Tinubu said his administration would implement further financial reforms in the coming weeks.

He said while addressing Nigerians residents in France, “Then, the financial system was rotten. Few people were making away with our money and then you yourselves, stopped sending money home to our poor parents.

“That is gone now. The man (Emefiele) is in the hands of authorities; something is being done about that; they will sort themselves out.

“We have security challenges in the country. Maybe that is how they are fuelling insecurity; we have to look at everything. We will change the financial system; it will work for you.”

The President said he and his Special Adviser on Monetary Policy, Mr Wale Edun, turned the fortunes of Lagos State around between 1999 and 2003 moving the internally generated revenue from N600m annually to N50bn monthly.

“Now, Lagos is on auto pilot. Anybody intelligent enough can navigate it,” he added.

 Tinubu also promised to work for those who did not vote for him during the February 25 election in which he was declared the winner.

“Whether you voted for me or you didn’t vote for me, I am your president. By the grace of God, I have to work on your behalf,” he explained.

The President who described Nigeria’s challenges as “enormous,” said he was prepared for the job ahead of him.

Tinubu stated, “So, your President is here. I danced for it and I have to continue to be prepared for it.

“The challenges are enormous. But do we have hope? Yes. With perseverance, determination and persistence, we can achieve whatever we desire.”

He also noted that he, like some in the audience, had experienced the rough side of Diaspora life, saying “I know the road and I’ve been through what many of you have been through outside the country. I’ve been in America and in the UK; I had been a night guard, security man and a door man in America. But I have achieved my aim.”

Meanwhile, Tinubu on Friday in Paris said Nigeria was ready to work with the Republic of Benin towards economic prosperity as both countries needed each other, especially on issues of trade, security and border controls.

 “We must recognise the fact that we need each other. We are in a loop and no one should separate us,” Tinubu said when he received the President of Benin Republic, Patrice Talon, after the summit on New Global Financing Pact.

The President’s Special Adviser on Special Duties, Communication and Strategy, Dele Alake, in a statement, described Nigeria’s relations with Benin as that of Siamese twins. Tinubu assured Talon that his administration would always be open and accessible to all neighbouring countries.

Responding, Talon said he was inspired with renewed hope for the sub-region and Africa at the inauguration of President Tinubu in Abuja, pledging to provide support on trade and security policy, especially at the borders.

The Debt Management Office (DMO) has disclosed that Nigeria’s total public debt has risen to $108.3bn (N49.8trn).

In a statement on Friday night, DMO stated that the figure which include money owed by the federal and state governments does not include the federal government’s N22.7tr Ways and Means Advances of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The statement read: “As at March 31, 2023, the Total Public Debt Stock comprising the external and domestic debts of the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN), the thirty-six (36) States, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was N49.85tr ($108.30bn).

“Comparatively, the Total Public Debt Stock for the preceding period, December 31, 2022, stood at N46.2tr ($103.3bn). During the period, there were increases in the debt stock of the FGN, States, and the FCT.”

“The Public Debt Stock for March 2023 does not include the FGN’s N22.719 Trillion Ways and Means Advances of the Central Bank of Nigeria whose securitization was approved by the National Assembly in May 2023. The amount will be included in the FGN’s Domestic Debt Stock from June 2023.”

Experts have warned the current administration of President Bola Tinubu against incurring debts.

The People’s Democratic Party on Friday closed its case at the Presidential Election Petitions Court after presenting a total of 27 witnesses to challenge President Bola Tinubu’s election victory.

“Pursuant to the pre-hearing report, may we most humbly apply to close the case for the petitioners,” PDP lead counsel, Chris Uche added.

The panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani then said the “ball is now in the court” of the Independent National Electoral Commission and other respondents to defend Tinubu’s victory in line with its pre-hearing report.

INEC’s lawyer Oluwakemi Pinheiro SAN, pleaded that the PEPC should permit the electoral umpire and other respondents to open their defence after the Salah Celebration break.

He said that was the agreement between lawyers to parties.

On his part, Wole Olanipekun SAN, counsel for Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, assured the panel that he and other respondents would conclude their defense within one week.

Ruling on their application, the court “adjourned the petition to July 3 for defense.”

Earlier at the resumption of proceedings, the court cautioned Barrister Mike Enahoro Ebah regarding how he was not giving straight answers thrown at him by the lawyers representing President Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress.

The witness (PW27) presented by the Peoples Democratic party had earlier tendered in evidence the notarised judgment of the US District Court regarding Tinubu’s alleged forfeiture of funds traced to his bank account suspected to be proceeds of narcotic deals, as well as printed extract of Guinean passport of the president, among other particulars.

It was admitted as Atiku’s evidence.

Under cross-examination by Tinubu’s lawyer, Olanipekun SAN, Enahoro said the US University which is the official custodian of Tinubu’s academic records, issued them to him.

The witness told the court that he instituted a criminal complaint (CR/121/2022) against Tinubu at the Magistrate court sitting in Abuja.

Olanipekun then tendered the court case Enahoro filed against Tinubu to the PEPC but PDP lawyer, Chris Uche SAN, raised an objection.

But the court admitted them as evidence.

In his court case, the witness said the Chief Magistrate of the Court declined jurisdiction on his complaint and no court order was made.

On the Guinean passport he tendered, he said he downloaded it from the internet.

“As a lawyer, did you find out from the Guinean Embassy whether Tinubu renounced the purported citizenship,” Olanipekun asked.

The witness did not answer yes or no but said he read on an online news platform, Sahara reporters, that the Guinean president confirmed Tinubu’s citizenship.

“Don’t try to dribble the court,” the panel told Enahoro, adding that even though he is a lawyer, he should respond to the questions “the way you are asked.”

The court also told the PDP lawyer, Uche to prevail on the witness to answer questions appropriately.

“Some of us here have practiced the legal profession for 40 years. We are not dumb,” Justice Haruna Tsammani told the witness, looking in his direction.

Enahoro eventually admitted that he did not find out about Tinubu’s passport from the Guinean Embassy.

Olanipekun insisted that the passport he tendered expired in 2020 but Enahoro replied that citizenship does not expire.

Speaking further on the US judgment that led to President Tinubu’s forfeiture of $460,000 to the U.S government, the witness said he was not aware that the US Consulate in Nigeria on February 4, 2003, stated that there are no criminal records against Tinubu.

“Are you aware that the Chicago State University in June 27 2022, in a statement duly signed by Caleb Weisberg stated that Tinubu attended and graduated from the school?,” Olanipekun further asked the witness, to which he said he was not aware.

Olanipekun then tendered the school’s statement as evidence but Uche objected while INEC and APC supported the tendered document.

The court admitted it.

Olanipekun asked the witness to tell the court whether there was an arraignment, plea, trial of Tinubu in the US Court judgment which he tendered.

The witness tried explaining that Tinubu forfeited a huge sum of money but a member of the panel interjected and said he should tell the layman if Tinubu pleaded guilty or not.

“On the face of the court judgement, there was no arraignment or plea, but Tinubu agreed to forfeit,” the witness replied.

“With all respect, you will not like anyone to scandalize you?

“I don’t want anyone to scandalize me that is why I will not forge documents,” Enahoro replied.

APC’s lawyer, Lateef Fagbemi SAN, asked Enahoro if the documents he tendered from Chicago State University were certified by the school.

The witness insisted the letter from the University attached to the academic records means the school records do not require any certification.

But the panel told the witness that he should stop “all this dribbling…”

The witness was then asked if he was a member of APC. He replied that he is “part of the Obidient movement of the Labour party.”

The witness was eventually discharged by the court.

LP CLOSES DEFENCE

Meanwhile, the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, also closed their case today after calling a total of 13 witnesses and presenting several electoral documents including INEC Form EC8As.

The Chief Spokesman of the LP Presidential Campaign Council and National Director, Media, Labour party, Yunusa Tanko testified on Friday.

He told the PEPC that he also served as the national collation agent at the party’s situation room.

Being led in evidence by Obi’s lead counsel, Livy Uzoukwu SAN, he tendered receipts issued by INEC to LP for several documents requested from the electoral umpire by the party.

The court admitted them in evidence.

He had earlier tendered 18,088 blurred polling unit results downloaded from IREV certified by INEC.

The five-man panel of the court led by Justice Haruna Tsammani admitted them as evidence.

Under cross-examination by INEC lawyer, Oluwakemi Pinheiro SAN, Yunusa confirmed he was in Abuja during the February 25 presidential election, adding he voted at a polling unit in Dutse Alhaji and returned to the party’s situation room in Asokoro to monitor events nationwide.

He was also presented with a copy of a Federal High Court judgement on Labour Party versus INEC (FHC/ABJ/CS/1454/2022), delivered on January 3, 2023.

Yunusa confirmed the court judgement and Pinheiro tendered it as evidence before the PEPC.

Obi’s lead counsel, Livy Uzoukwu SAN objected to the tendering of the FHC judgement but withheld his reasons until his final address.

Lawyers representing President Bola Tinubu and All Progressives Congress backed INEC on its request to tender the court judgement and the court admitted it.

He was asked to read the last two paragraphs of the said judgment of the trial court in open court, wherein the judge held there is nowhere INEC is mandated to only use an electronic means in collating and transferring results.

Yunusa was also shown Form EC8A, Polling Unit 070, Ward 07, LGA 02, FCT, by the INEC lawyer.

He said the scores on the forms shown to him by INEC lawyer are blurred, mutilated and the figures cancelled with strong ink.

“In your deposition, have you stated the unlawful votes ascribed by INEC to Tinubu,” Tinubu’s lawyer stated but Yunusa said he did not.

“In Anambra state, Peter Obi scored 95.7 percent of the votes cast. Do you want the court to cancel the votes scored by Obi?” Tinubu’s lawyer, Wole Olanipekun, asked Yunusa to which he responded that he wanted the court to order INEC to upload the actual votes scored by Obi as against the one announced.

Asked if he experiences network failure on his mobile phone, Yunusa responded “seemingly so”.

He was asked to state the unlawful votes credited to Tinubu as he claimed in his statement on oath.

“Our expert documented the actual scores in his report,” Yunusa replied, saying he doesn’t have it offhand.

The witness added that the wasted votes INEC accredited to Tinubu are also contained in the evidence of its expert.

“We are challenging the entire election declared by INEC,” Yunusa said.

Yunusa was discharged for another witness, Peter Emmanuel Yari, to enter the witness box.

Emmanuel adopted his statement on oath which he filed today.

He said he served as an ad-hoc INEC presiding officer and could not upload the scanned copy of INEC Form EC8A using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System BVAS machine provided by the electoral umpire.

The petitioners, who have been tendering their evidence since May 8, will now be in the position to cross-examine the witnesses fielded by INEC and the legal team of Tinubu and the APC.

While Atiku had promised to field 100 witnesses, Obi’s lawyers had assured they would field 50.

But on Friday, the former ended with 27 witnesses while the latter concluded with 13 witnesses.

Though belonging to separate parties, PDP and LP had filed motions seeking permission for live transmission of proceedings as well as an order to inspect the BVAS machines used for the election, among others.

But the panel struck out the application for live transmission.

The PEPC had also directed INEC to reconfigure the BVAS machine while supplying the petitioners with the data extracted from the machines, among other electoral materials.