Contempt: Lawyers ask court to jail MultiChoice MD

John Ugbe

Two Lagos-based legal practitioners, Oluyinka Oyeniji and Osasuyi Adebayo, have commenced contempt proceedings against the Managing Director of MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, Mr. John Ugbe, for allegedly violating a court order.

Ugbe, alongside the Public Relations Manager of the company, Caroline Oghuma, is liable to being jailed if found guilty of the allegation.

The lawyers had, on April 2, 2015, secured a court order of interim injunction restraining MultiChoice from giving effect to its proposed 20 per cent increment on subscription fee on the Digital Satellite Television (DStv) being operated by it.

Justice C.J. Aneke of a Federal High Court in Lagos, who made the interim order, had held that the order would subsist till the determination of a lawsuit contesting the legality of MultiChoice’s newly-introduced subscription rates on DStv.

However, at the resumed hearing on Thursday, one of the plaintiffs, Oyeniyi, informed the court that in spite of the court order, MultiChoice had not stopped its new rates, which had commenced from April 1.

“My Lord, whether wrongly or rightly, on the 2nd of April, your Lordship made an order that is bound to be obeyed. We filed a further affidavit citing the defendants for contempt of court,” Oyeniyi said.

In their motion on notice, served on the defendants along with Forms 48 and 49, the lawyers attached as exhibits copies of receipts issued by MultiChoice to certain subscribers reflecting payment of the new subscription rate of N13, 980 rather than the old rate of N11, 650 in spite of the court order.

“It is in the interest of justice to grant this application and empower the honourable court as the place of last resort to the plaintiffs in preserving the dignity of the court,” the plaintiffs pleaded as they urged the court to make an order of committal against Ugbe and Oghuma.

The other prayer contained in their motion on notice was for the court to order MultiChoice to make a refund of all excess charges to all customers who had subscribed to the new rate in the face of the subsisting court order.

The plaintiffs also asked for an order mandating MultiChoice to tender a full page public apology in four national newspapers including The Punch, ThisDay, The Guardian and The Sun, to all subscribers for violating the court order.

They also want the court to compel the company to tender televised apology on DStv as well as via text messages to all subscribers in the country.

But lawyer for MultiChoice, Mr. M.J. Onigbanjo (SAN), said the order was wrongly made.

He noted that while the order was granted on April 2, the increment that the applicants complained of took effect on April 1 and his client could, therefore, not be held for contempt of court.

But Oyeniyi maintained that the order was for a continuing action rather than a concluded action.

The plaintiffs in their substantive suit are seeking an order of the court compelling the National Broadcasting Commission to regulate the activities of MultiChoice on DStv.

They want an enforcement of the pay-per-view scheme, whereby subscribers would only pay for programmes they watched, as was being done in other parts of the world where MultiChoice operated.

But the company, through Onigbanjo, is challenging the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the suit as well as the competence of the originating summons served on it.

Onigbanjo contended that the applicants lacked the locus standi to institute the action, saying they could not dictate how MultiChoice would run and conduct its business.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria also insisted that it was not within the authority of NBC to prevent the company from making increment in the price of services being offered to its customers.

He pointed the attention of the court to clauses 40 and 41 of the company’s terms of conditions which stated that “MultiChoice Nigeria may, from time to time, change the fees payable to MultiChoice Nigeria for the MultiChoice service by way of general amendment.”

Onigbanjo said the plaintiff had no reasonable cause of action, just as he described the suit as academic “because the act complained of has been completed.”

Besides, he argued that the originating summons served on his client was defective, as service was not compliant with Section 97 of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act, as regards a writ that must be served outside the court’s jurisdiction.

Aneke adjourned till May 5, 2015 for further hearing.

We’ll work with Buhari, says US

 US Vice President Joe Biden

The United States Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday assured the President-elect, Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), that the US government was willing and ready to work with him.

According to a statement issued by the White House on Thursday, the US Vice President said this when he phoned Buhari to congratulate him on his victory in the March 28 election on Wednesday.

It added that Biden affirmed that the “United States of America stands ready to expand collaboration with Nigeria on issues of common concern, including economic and security matters.”

The Vice President also commended Buhari for his leadership in helping to ensure that the elections were conducted peacefully and urged him to continue to foster a smooth, inclusive, and peaceful transition with President Goodluck Jonathan.

The statement added, “The Vice President expressed the United States’ support for Nigeria’s efforts to counter Boko Haram, recover hostages held by the group, and protect civilian populations. The Vice President also expressed the willingness of the United States to partner Nigeria to strengthen its economy.”

Earlier in the week, the President-elect had said that Nigeria would work closely with the US government especially in the area of military cooperation and security.

Unknown epidemic hits Ondo, kills 12

Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko

NO fewer than 12 people have died from an unknown epidemic which recently hit Ode Irele, a serene community in Irele Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The state Commissioner for Health,   Dayo Adeyanju, who made this known to journalists in Akure on Wednesday, did not say when and how the disease was first noticed in the community.

He however added that four persons with fresh symptoms of the disease had been isolated at the General Hospital, Ode Irele.

According to Adeyanju, preliminary reports showed that prior to the deaths, all the victims, complained of headaches and later lost their sight before dying.

The commissioner explained that the symptoms of the epidemic were different from those of   Ebola Virus Disease, which are   diarrhoea, vomiting and haemorrhage.

While giving the assurance that everything possible would be done to ensure that the disease did not spread, Adeyanju said the state government had already sought the aid of the World Health Organisation and other partners.

He added that the Disease Surveillance Team and volunteers that were engaged in the state during the EVD outbreak had been activated.

Adeyanju also disclosed that the Personnel Protective Equipment purchased by the government to curtail Ebola   was being used in the handling of the disease.

According to him, samples taken from the victims had been sent to Lagos State for proper investigation.

The commissioner also said the government had   commenced an   awareness campaign through which the public   was being encouraged to report any case of the disease .

While stating that the state already had a cremation law in place, Adeyanju advised relations of the victims against burying them at home.

He warned the public against sensationalizing the disease, particularly in the social media, so as not to create fears among the people.

Adeyanju’s   Information counterpart, Kayode Akinmade, said the government had already contacted the Federal Ministry of Health over the disease.

A   professor of infectious diseases and Chief Executive Officer, Ebola Alert, Bakare Lawal, said that samples   obtained from the victims were being analyzed to enable experts to determine whether the disease was bacterial or viral infections.

Meanwhile, online search vide the healthline.com reveals that the symptoms mimic those of Temporal arteritis.

The portal states, “Temporal arteritis is a condition in which the temporal arteries, which supply blood to the head and brain, become inflamed or damaged. It is also known as cranial arteritis or giant cell arteritis.”

It notes that although this condition usually occurs in the temporal arteries, temporal arteritis can occur in almost any medium to large artery in the body.

The portal adds that older individuals over 60 years of age are more likely than-younger individuals to develop the condition, while women are almost four times as likely as men to develop temporal arteritis.

The portal advises that although the exact cause of the condition is unknown, there may be a link with the body’s auto-immune response.

“In addition, excessive doses of antibiotics and certain severe infections have been linked to temporal arteritis. There is no known prevention for the condition. However, once diagnosed, temporal arteritis can be treated to minimise complications,” it says.

Symptoms of temporal arteritis can include excessive sweating, disturbances in vision (blurred vision, double vision, reduced vision), sudden, permanent loss of vision in one eye, throbbing headache (usually in the temples), fatigue and weakness, general ill feeling, loss of appetite, muscle aches, transient jaw pain, fever, unintentional weight loss, bleeding gums, facial pain, hearing loss, mouth sores, and drooping eyelid.

Others are joint pain and stiffness, shoulder and hip pain and stiffness, depression, tenderness in the scalp and temple areas.

The portal warns that it is important to see the doctor for a thorough examination to obtain an accurate diagnosis.

According to the U.S-based National Institute of Health, nearly 40 per cent of affected individuals will also experience symptoms such as nerve pain or respiratory problems.

WHO had on October 20, 2014 declared Nigeria free of EVD, a deadly disease that was imported   on July 20, 2014 by a Liberian-born   American diplomat, Patrick Sawyer.

Sawyer died of the disease on July 24 at the First Consultants Hospital in Obalende Lagos State.

Before   WHO gave the country a clean bill of health, the disease had claimed exactly seven lives out of the 19 cases recorded in the country.

The first Nigerian victim who died of the EVD was Dr. Ameyo Adadevoh, who attended to Sawyer while he was on admission in Lagos.

Buhari, Ezekwesili, Shekau among TIME’s 100 most influential persons

 Buhari, Ezekwesili, Adichie, Shekau

President-elect Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has made the TIME’s list of 100 most influential people in the world.

Also included in the 2015 list are a former Minister of Education and an advocate of the BringBackOurGirlsGroup, Mrs. Obiageli Ezekwesili; award-winning novelist, Chimamanda Adichie, and leader of the Boko Haram terrorist group, Abubakar Shekau.

The TIME 100 is an annual list of 100 most influential people in the world whose works are changing the world, regardless of the consequences of their actions.

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Described as “a new choice for Nigeria,” TIME’s Africa Bureau Chief, Aryn Baker, said Buhari made history in March by becoming the first candidate to oust a sitting Nigerian President through the ballot box.

“Now he has to live up to voters’ expectations. From battling the Boko Haram insurgency to tackling endemic corruption, Buhari has many challenges ahead. The greatest may be overcoming his past as a military ruler, who seized power in 1983.

“Already the born-again democrat is demonstrating the inclusivity necessary to lead a nation driven by ethnic and religious tension. It’s a promising start for a President-to-be, who wants to leave a legacy to match the historic conditions of his election,” Baker noted.

Renowned Ugandan activist, Sister Rosemary Nyirumbe, said of Ezekwesili, “It has been a year, and the girls (Chibok girls) haven’t been rescued, but she has made a difference by speaking about it. Not just speaking but shouting. I know some people will say she is too loudmouthed. The loud mouth is needed. People hear it.”

Adichie was also described as a “conjurer of character” by the deputy Managing Director of TIME, Radhika Jones.

“It’s the rare novelist, who in the space of a year finds her words sampled by Beyoncé, optioned by Lupita Nyong’o and honoured with the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction,” she said.

The last Nigerian to make the list is Shekau. Described as the “scourge of Africa” by Gen. Carter Ham(retd.), a former Commander of US Africa Command from 2011 to 2013.

S’African attacks: FG directs Nigerians to remain indoors

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Aminu Wali

Nigerians resident in South Africa have been directed by the Federal Government to remain indoors up until the ongoing xenophobic attacks in the country are put under control.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Aminu Wali, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of a meeting he attended at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He said the directive was communicated to them by Nigeria’s mission in Pretoria.

The minister said,   “With the discussions I have been having with Nigeria’s Head of Mission in Pretoria, no Nigerian has so far been affected.

“They informed me that they have called members of the Nigerian community and addressed them and told them to close their shops, stay at home and keep out of trouble and obey the laws of South Africa.

“They have also confirmed that the South African authorities have moved in to take actions that would forestall any further disturbance in that country.”

Wali however said the government would not hesitate to evacuate Nigerians from the country if the situation worsened.

He said, “If it (the situation) gets worse, it is the duty of our country to make sure our people are brought back and we are taking that duty seriously. We are not prepared to allow any of our nationals to be subjected to such inhuman treatment.

“We are not being reactionary because this is happening to all foreigners, not Nigerians alone. We are monitoring the situation and will now take action according to the situation that develops.”

On the investigation ordered by the President on the recent diplomatic row between Nigeria and Morocco over the reported telephone conversation   between Jonathan   and King Mohammed VI of Morocco, Wali simply said, “We are still at it.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs later issued a statement in which it called on the South Africa government to stop the attacks and put in place measures to   “prevent a reoccurrence. “Condemning the attacks which began two weeks ago,   it said Nigeria abhorred violence and also “stands firm in its conviction that no cause could justify taking innocent souls.”

The statement read in part, “The people and government of Nigeria stand in solidarity with the rest of the world to condemn these unprovoked attacks on fellow Africans who have left their countries to seek greener pastures and better livelihood for themselves.

“The government of Nigeria would like to use this medium to reiterate its abhorrence of violence and … therefore calls on the government of South Africa to live up to its responsibilities and take all necessary steps to stop the ongoing xenophobic attacks.

“It is gratifying to note, however, that the a South African President(Jacob Zuma) has condemned the attack. In addition, the city of Durban has also organised rallies against xenophobia.”

Also in Abuja, the   House of Representatives   asked the government to recall Nigeria’s Ambassador     for “consultations “over the widespread attacks and killing of non-South African blacks.

A motion debated by the members of the House in Abuja, highlighted the plight of African migrants in South Africa, whom they said were being “slaughtered like animals” by black South Africans.

The motion stressed that Nigerians were among the victims.

The House specifically requested South African President, Jacob Zuma, to immediately investigate the attacks and punish those responsible.

The motion was sponsored by the Chairman, House Committee on Diaspora Affairs,   Abike Dabiri-Erewa.

“Nigeria frowns on the spate of killings of Nigerians in South Africa and requests President Zuma to investigate the cases and bring the perpetrators to justice”, the motion stated.

Dabiri-Erewa noted that though Nigerians had suffered xenophobic attacks in the past in South Africa, the latest cases were ignited by comments credited to the Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini, who had reportedly asked migrant Africans to return to their countries of origin.

The motion read further, “The House notes sadly that the recent attacks which have left many dead, businesses and shops vandalised, many beaten up mercilessly, were incited by a statement allegedly made by South African Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini, who told African migrants to go home as they are no longer welcomed in South Africa.

“Son of President Zuma, Edward, allegedly echoed the same statement. This ignited a strong debate, and worse still, immediate backlash of violent reactions among the Zulus in Kwazulu, who unleashed terror on foreign immigrants, including Nigerians in Jo-bourg, Durban and Pretoria.

“They steal, break into their homes, businesses, take their properties, killing them.

“At least five have been killed in Durban, hundreds stranded and unable to return home.”

Many members, who contributed to the debate, expressed sadness over the turn of events in South Africa.

They recalled with pain, the sacrifices Nigeria made to free South Africa from the clutches of apartheid.

“What is happening in South Africa is a demonstration of the shortness of their memory,” a member from Enugu State,   Tobi Okechukwu, said.

Another lawmaker,   Abubakar Momoh,   advised South Africans to turn their anger against those who oppressed them in the apartheid era and not fellow Africans, who gave so much to secure their freedom.

The motion was passed in a unanimous voice vote at Thursday’s session, which was presided over by the Speaker,   Aminu Tambuwal.

A Nigerian based in South Africa on Thursday told The PUNCH that the South African Government was secretly promoting the   attacks on black Africans in their country.

“It’s horrendous. The   government is secretly   gingering them. The government wants all   illegal immigrants to be driven away but it went out of proportion. But our people are prepared. We are not running away.”

IOC President invites Buhari to Lausanne

Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd)

President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, has congratulated the President-elect, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) on his victory at the polls and also extended an invitation to him to visit the IOC headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In a congratulatory message sent to Buhari and copied to the President of the Nigeria Olympic Committee, Mr. Habu Gumel, the IOC President told Buhari that, “the election demonstrates the great confidence the people of Nigeria have in you. For your team, I wish you all the very best and a great success.”

Buhari, who will also become the Grand Patron of the NOC from May 29, was invited to the IOC headquarters by Bach.

“During such a visit, we could look for ways to further strengthen the already excellent relations between Nigeria and the IOC. 

You may also consider visiting the Olympic Museum in which the great contribution of your country to the Olympic Movement is reflected,” Bach wrote in the letter signed by him.

Kidnapping is our family business, says arrested nanny

Adeyemi, The kids

The nanny, who kidnapped three children in the Surulere area of Lagos State, has said her husband, Waheed Kareem, is the mastermind of the kidnap.

She added that Kareem was the head of a kidnap ring that involved some members of his family. It was gathered that Kareem escaped arrest.

The nanny, who adopted a pseudonym, Mary Akinloye, to deceive the Orekoyas, confessed that her actual name was Funmilayo Adeyemi, a 35-year-old indigene of Osun State.

PUNCH Metro had reported that the Orekoyas had posted on OLX, an online sales portal, saying they needed a nanny for their children.

The suspect was said to have contacted the family and was employed immediately.

Barely 24 hours after she was employed, the nanny abducted three children of the family – Aderomola (11 months), Adedamola (4 years) and Demola (6 years).

Our correspondent reported that N15m ransom was initially demanded from the family, which was later reduced to N13 after much appeal by the victims’ mother.

PUNCH Metro reported that the family paid an undisclosed amount of money into the bank account of the kidnappers before the children were released on Tuesday.

On Thursday, the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State, Kayode Aderanti, announced that the nanny had been arrested.

She was paraded at the Lagos State Police Command Headquatres in Ikeja.

The suspect told our correspondent that it was the second time she would be abducting kids in the state.

She confessed to have been responsible for the kidnap of two kids– Rapheal and Michael – in the Magodo area of Lagos State.

Adeyemi said her husband, four children and she were formerly living in the Ajah area of Lagos State, but relocated to Shasha to evade arrest after kidnapping the Magodo boys.

Adeyemi claimed that the victims’ parents paid N2m, adding that she was paid N30,000 by her husband.

She said she was contacted for maid jobs through her brother-in-law and his wife, who were always online to track posts.

On how she kidnapped the Orekoya children, she said, “On Wednesday, their father and mother went to work. I put the little one on my back, while I held the others by the hands, telling them that I wanted to buy them something. We boarded a vehicle to Ojuelegba and from there; I took another bus to Iyana Ipaja and contacted my husband.

“I took them home, where they stayed with me in one of the rooms. I bought cereal for the 11-months-old baby; he was always fed with pap at his mother’s place. I gave the others normal food. They always watch cartoon on the television; they never missed home.

“My husband told me that he wanted to collect a token from the parents, but the following day, I found out that the kidnappers demanded N15m.

“I challenged my husband for asking for such a big sum. He said I should shut up because I had already fulfilled my part and that it was time for them to do theirs. Later, I heard in the news that he had reduced it to N13m.”

The 35-year-old said she did not feel any remorse for her action until she saw the victims’ mother weeping on a national television.

She said she begged her husband to release the kids.

“But my husband said he would not release the kids until he collected the money. Later, he told me they had paid the money,” she added.

PUNCH Metro learnt that the kidnap gang consisted of four people– Adeyemi’s brother-in-law, Hakeem Kareem; her husband, Waheed Kareem; her sister-in-law, Ajoke Oseni, and herself.

She said when the police arrested her, she was at a fan repairer’s workshop, adding that her husband saw them taking her away and fled.

Adeyemi said she was a victim of bad marriage, advising parents to always investigate on the kind of man their daughters intended to marry.

She appealed to the Orekoya family to forgive her of her wrongs.

She said, “Mummy Damola, don’t be offended at what I have done. This is what bad marriage did to me. I only delivered the message of my husband.”

PUNCH Metro learnt that when the police arrested the suspect, a 16-year-old girl, Henrietta Odili, was equally apprehended.

Odili, an indigene of Delta State was said to be living with an uncle in Benin, when she saw a post on OLX that the gang needed a maid.

Odili, a Senior Secondary School pupil, told our correspondent that she ran away from home to work with the group and she was overwhelmed by the love they showed her.

She said, “I met this woman (Adeyemi) through OLX. I was searching for a job online when I saw that she needed a maid and I decided to work with her. When I got to their place in Lagos, they took my phone and said they would return it after one month. But they never did until after two months. When they returned it, they had removed my SIM card. I observed that all their things were done in secrecy.”

Asked if she saw the Orekoya kids when they were kidnapped, she said Adeyemi told her they were children of a popular artiste, Waje.

She said, “When she brought the first two kids– Michael and Rapheal – she said they were her family members and were on holiday.

“She told me that the new boys were Waje’s children and their mother asked her to take care of them. I never suspected I was living with kidnappers.

“But yesterday (Wednesday), we went to visit somebody. I just noticed she started running and I ran with her. The police caught up with us and said she was a kidnapper, and I was a suspect.”

The Commissioner of Police said the police got the suspect by tracking her telephone line.

He said, “Upon the rescue of the kids, I gave the directive that she should be arrested. We tracked her down through her phone, using the technological tools at our disposal. We arrested her at Shasha, where the children were rescued.

“Initially she denied that she was involved in the kidnap. But eventually she opened up. We are in hot pursuit of others and we will get them soon.”

Aderanti advised parents and guardians not to be in a hurry to employ house helps without doing background checks on them.”

When our correspondent visited the residence of the Orekoyas on Lawanson Road, he met the family in a joyous mood.

The children were seen playing around the house.

On their experience, one of the children, Demola, said, “Our aunty took us to our new house. She gave us bread, indomie and rice. They put us in a bag, like the one they put rice in, and put us inside the car.”

Their mother, Adebisi, said despite the criticism that had trailed her decision to hire a nanny on OLX, she did not think she was wrong.

She said by employing a nanny, she was also creating a job.

Their father, Leke, refused to disclose the amount paid to the kidnappers.

Revealed: Plot to abduct Jega during presidential poll

INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega

Fresh facts have emerged on the March 31 attempt by a former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe, to scuttle the announcement of the March 28 presidential election results.

The main part of Orubebe’s action, according to Reuters on Thursday, was a plot to use hired thugs     to kidnap the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, and consequently stall the electoral process.

The news agency quoted unnamed pro-democracy advocates and a Nigeria-based diplomat as saying that one of Jega’s aides unearthed the plot.

It said that the aide had sent a text message to an independent voting monitor, “warning of an imminent threat to the electoral process.”

Reuters said it pieced the information together from the text message, events on the ground during the announcement of the results and interviews with pro-democracy advocates and diplomats in   Abuja.

It added that when the independent voting monitor sent the SMS, he hoped the outside world would hear of the plot and the text of the message .

“Fellow countrymen, Nigeria on Trial,” read the SMS sent on the morning of March 31 to the head of the Situation Room, an Abuja-based coalition of human rights groups and pro-democracy advocates monitoring the elections.

“Plans are on storm [sic] the podium at the ICC Collation Centre and disrupt the process. Nobody is sue [sic] what will happen. Please share this as widely as possible,” the text read further.

At that moment,   Jega was about to preside over the announcement of the results.

As tallies from around the country showed that the All Progressives Congress candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, was leading, “unidentified PDP(Peoples Democratic Party) hard-liners started to panic, seeking ways of manipulating the count,” the boss of the Situation Room and the diplomat said, citing political contacts in the Niger Delta and Abuja.

Realising they could not engineer an outright win,   the PDP agents set about doctoring the tally at collation centres in pro- (Goodluck) Jonathan areas to ensure Buhari failed to meet a requirement for 25 per cent support in two-thirds of the states, the head of the Situation Room said, citing reports from election monitors on the ground.

Reuters said its reporter witnessed and photographed one tally list in Port Harcourt, Rivers State with suspiciously similar totals for registered voters at polling stations: 500, 500, 500, 500, 500, 500, 500, 500, 450.

In another tally centre in the city, 17,594 valid votes were recorded out of a registered voter population of 11,757, the Reuters reporter said.

Foreign election observers also noted the peculiarities – and contacted diplomats in Abuja who called in international intervention.

The United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, and his British counterpart, Philip Hammond, who were in Switzerland for talks on Iran – issued a tough statement saying vote counting “may be subject to deliberate political interference.”

But   as Buhari’s lead grew, some PDP supporters from the Niger Delta, including Orubebe, decided on a final gamble: to create a disturbance in the main INEC hall and have “thugs snatch Jega from the stage, Reuters quoted the Head of the Situation Room and the Abuja-based diplomat.

What the group planned to do after the abduction was unclear, they   said.

“It was a desperate thing, mostly by a group of people from the Niger Delta who were in the room,” the Situation Room head said, describing events that unfolded publicly in the minutes after he received the SMS.

When Jega opened proceedings on the morning of March 31, Orubebe had grabbed a microphone and launched into an 11-minute tirade accusing Jega of bias.

“Mr. chairman, we have lost confidence in you,” he shouted, pushing away officials trying to make him surrender the microphone. “You are being very, very selective. You are partial,” he continued, surrounded by three or four supporters. “You are tribalistic. We cannot take it.”

At this point, according to the Head of the Situation Room and the diplomat, Jega’s security details were approached by unidentified individuals telling them to stand down but they declined.

“Some of the guards who had been guarding Jega for years demanded a written order,” the Head of the Situation Room said.

Jega later rebuked Orubebe, saying, “Let us not disrupt a process that has ended peacefully,” he said as Orubebe slumped in his chair.

“Mr. Orubebe, you are a former minister of the Federal Republic. You are a statesman in your own right. You should be careful about what you say or about what allegations you make,” he said.

Orubebe later congratulated Buhari on Twitter, expressing his “apologies to fellow Nigerians.”

Orubebe did not respond to requests by the news agency for comment on the details of the plot.

INEC, said the news agency,   also declined to comment and turned down requests for an interview with Jega,

  Reuters however said it found no evidence to suggest that Jonathan, who accepted defeat in the election, was involved in the plot.

The Chief Press Secretary to the chairman of the commission,   Kayode Idowu, told our correspondent that he was not aware of the alleged plot to kidnap Jega.

Idowu said, “I think somebody is imagining here. The chairman was not aware of any such plan, he didn’t conduct any investigation to know that. He was not under such threat during or after the announcement.’’