A Democracy friendly Non-Governmental organization – HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has faulted the failure of the speaker of the Federal House of Representatives Aminu Waziri Tambuwal to inaugurate Mr. Tony Nwoye as the legally recognized member to represent Anambra East/West Federal Constituency in the National Assembly.
Convinced that Tony Nwoye, the erstwhile national president of the National Association of Nigerian Students [NANS] has obtained all the legally valid requirements to be inaugurated as member of the Federal House of representatives in exercise of the mandate of his constituents since last year as a consequence of the post-2011 election litigation and pronouncements from competent courts of law, the Rights body has therefore asked the House leadership to comply with the rule of law and swear -in Mr. Tony Nwoye without any further breach of the law.
These observations by the HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) was contained in a media statement endorsed jointly by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs officer Miss. Zainab Yusuf and made available to journalists in Abuja.
HURIWA stated thus; “our attention has been drawn to alleged abuse of office, arbitrary and unlawful act by the leadership of the Federal House of Representatives by its refusal to accord Mr. Tony Nwoye his constitutional right to be inaugurated to take his seat as the member representing Anambra East/West Federal Constituency at the National Assembly in full compliance with extant decisions of competent courts of law”.
HURIWA said it was aware that on July 13th 2012, Mr. Tony Nwoye secured the order of mandamus/Judgment mandating the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognize Mr. Tony Nwoye as the candidate of the April 2011 general election and also to issue him with certificate of Return in compliance to Supreme Court of Nigeria’s verdict of 9/6/2012 in appeal Number SC/69/2012 between Prince Emeka versus Lady Margery Okadigbo in which the apex Court among other prayers validly affirmed Mr. Tony Nwoye as the validly nominated candidate for the election by virtue of the fact that only the list produced by the National Executive Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party is sacrosanct.
HURIWA also affirmed that information available in the public domain is to the effect that the House leadership is breaching the law by refusing to inaugurate Mr. Tony Nwoye since he is the valid holder of the certificate of return issued on 16th/7/2012 by INEC in compliance to the due process of the law just as the rights group said any further violation of the due process of the law by the Federal House of Representatives in this instance remains an affront to democracy, rule of law and respect for the fundamental human rights of a Nigerian.
The Rights group therefore appealed to speaker Tambuwal as a reputable legal practitioner, to respect the due process of the law and the legal advice offered him on 12th September 2012 by the Director of legal services of the National Assembly, by immediately inaugurating Mr. Tony Nwoye as member representing Anambra East/West Federal Constituency rather than allow the current occupant of the seat Mr. Chriskato Ameke who from all available court records is adjudged not to be the validly nominated candidate of the ruling party which won the coveted seat in compliance with extant decision of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
