LAGOS, Nigeria — The citizenship of Lagos State Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, has come under the spotlight at the Lagos State Election Petition Tribunal.
A US-based Immigration lawyer, Olubusayo Fasidi, testified on Friday, June 23, 2023, that Hamzat took an oath of allegiance in the United States, which, she claimed, entailed renouncing his Nigerian citizenship.
Fasidi was subpoenaed to appear before the tribunal and was led in evidence by Dr. Olumide Ayeni, the counsel representing the Labour Party, LP, candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who filed the petition.
Hamzat is listed as the third respondent in the petition.
During her testimony, Fasidi stated that Hamzat had applied for naturalization in the United States, as documented in Forms 8CFR/337 and 400.
Ayeni attempted to submit the documents as evidence to the three-man panel led by Justice Arum Ashom.
However, counsels representing all the respondents staunchly opposed this move. They declared that they would address their objections in their final written submissions.
In a cross-examination by Eric Ogiegor, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Fasidi acknowledged that an individual could hold dual citizenship.
She professed unfamiliarity with the provisions of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution concerning dual citizenship, clarifying that her testimony pertained solely to US law.
Bode Olanipekun (SAN), representing both Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy, Hamzat, inquired about the specific jurisdiction and date of Hamzat’s application for naturalization.
Fasidi refused to divulge this information, citing protection under the U.S. Privacy Act of 1974.
Norris Quakers (SAN), counsel for the All Progressives Congress, APC, queried Fasidi on whether she was aware that Hamzat had publicly acknowledged his American citizenship.
Fasidi affirmed this, prompting Quakers to urge her to focus solely on legal matters, rather than factual issues.
Justice Ashom, while accepting all the documents into evidence, instructed the respondents’ counsel to encompass their objections in their closing written arguments.
The hearing was subsequently adjourned to June 26, 2023.
Prior to this, Ayeni presented result sheets from polling units across nine local councils in the state, alleging discrepancies between these records and those documented on INEC’s Form EC 40A.
The counsels for INEC, Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, and APC contested the admissibility of the form, withholding their reasons until their final written submissions.
As the tribunal investigates this critical matter, it remains to be seen what the consequences could be for Deputy Governor Hamzat and the political landscape of Lagos State.
