Governor Peter Mbah Is In Trouble, Remember I Told You So?

By Emeka Ugwuonye

Based on information monitored at our Lagos office today, the election tribunal sitting in Enugu has summoned Peter Mbah to appear before it tomorrow to answer questions on the NYSC certificate, which NYSC has denied.

For a start, you need to know that the proceedings at the electoral tribunal rarely really require the parties to appear in person before it. The parties only appear in person if they wish to give evidence. But when a party wishes to give evidence, he comes on him own. He does not need to be summoned or subpoenaed. However, when the court summons a party, it is a sign of trouble for the party summoned.

To be summoned by a court is for the court to order you to come. And when ordered to come, you must come or you will face the music. Why would the tribunal summon Peter Mbah to appear before it? The reason is obvious. The Petition against Peter Mbah contains allegation of certificate forgery. Certificate forgery is a criminal offense. For criminal offences, the court requires the offense to be proven beyond reasonable doubt. It is like when you allege a criminal offence in a civil proceeding such as domestic violence in a divorce petition. Because domestic violence is a crime, the court will take extra steps to ensure that the offense be proven to the standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt.

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The Petition against Mbah is claiming, among other things, that Mbah was not qualified to contest the election, having allegedly forged an NYSC discharge certificate and submitted it in violation of perjury laws. You will recall that I warned you at the very beginning that the certificate forgery is the most serious weapon against Mbah because it goes beyond the conduct of the elections. It goes to the fundamental question of eligibility to contest. I also indicated in my earlier posts that given the certificate forgery issue, Mbah could not be the Governor even if he had run unopposed. He would not have been qualified to stand for the election at all.

Owing to the weighty nature of the allegation of certificate forgery, Mbah will have to take the stand tomorrow. He will be cross-examined on how he got the certificate that has been denied by the NYSC. That is going to be an uphill task for Mbah. I have wondered what he could possibly say in his defense to that allegation. How will he explain it? How many NYSC do we have in Nigeria? The only NYSC we know has denied Mbah. So, Mbah has to go to his village and bring his village NYSC that issued him his own certificate.

The tribunal is expected to hear tomorrow on how he got that certificate. The judges are experienced jurists. They don’t want to conclude that Mbah forged the certificate without giving him an opportunity to explain himself. So, we wonder what miracle will save Mbah tomorrow. One thing is clear though: If Mbah fails to address the certificate forgery tomorrow, his case is as good as lost. He should start packing his stuff out of the government house.