The gubernatorial election tribunal sitting in Asaba on Friday, 4th September, admitted polling unit results from all the 25 LGA and also admitted the Governorship results of the April 2015 elections tendered by Emerhor/APC’s witness, the Director of operations and administration of the APC campaign organization 2015. However the tendering and adoption of results and documents passed through series of objections by the respondents and overruling by the tribunal. The results were arranged local government by local government, ward by ward for easy identification. The witness swore to four(4) depositions on that were filed on the 2nd of May, 29th of May and 5th of June respectively.
The 1st – 5th respondents objected to the depositions filed on the 29th of May and 5th of June stating that the pleadings were a breach of the electoral act and also indicating that the processes were an additional statement which could not be included and adopted in the petition since it was filed after the statutory 21 days. The petitioner in his response stated that all objections would be heard along the petitions in the course of the hearings as declared by the tribunal, that the respondents were served with the process in May and June respectively and raised no issues then as it has been deemed late to raise them presently. The petitioner also drew the attention of the tribunal to the fact that this issue of objection is a ploy sought by the respondents to delay the petition. However at the end of the arguments and counter arguments, the tribunal ruled in favour of the petitioners overruling the 1st – 5th respondents stating that the statement of the witnesses be adopted for the hearing to continue.
The results were adopted/ tendered local govt by local govt and ready for cross examination only for the 1st – 5th respondents to object to the admissibility of form “EC8A” the Governorship results of April 2015 stating that the results/ documents weren’t pleaded and can’t be admitted. The petitioner responded by asking the respondents whether they were taken by surprise of a document which was also in their possession, whether the respondents were in any doubt that the unit results were Inflated, the petitioner also stated that in his initial filing of the petition, it was clearly stated that the results produced by the 3rd respondents as stated in paragraphs 15 of the petition would be relied upon. The petitioner went further to state that in paragraph 16 of the petition that the results for the governorship election from the LGA can be tendered as documents sought and were listed by the petitioners as documents to be relied upon in number 5 of the petition filed while they were also specifically identified in paragraph 7 and 8 of the witness’s statement filed with the petition. The tribunal again ruled in favour of the petitioners overruling the 1st – 5th respondents stating that adequate notice was served on them, that the purpose of pleadings have been satisfied, that documentary evidence can be pleaded were it clearly indicates conflict of over voting with number of accreditation. The tribunal however stated that the respondents had failed to show why the polling unit results shouldn’t be admitted and marked as exhibits. The results were marked as exhibits and given sequential numbers as P8 – P33.
The form EC8C LGA results were however declined to be tendered by the tribunal since they were not clearly specified in the petitioners plea for listing.
Comparative analysis/summary of votes by Emerhor/APC’s witness was however also objected to by the 1st – 5th respondents stating that the document was not pleaded/stated in the petition of the petitioner. Chief Okpoko SAN stated that paragraph 16 of the petition clearly indicates that the document was pleaded, it was averred in paragraph 8 that a comparative analysis/summary of results clearly indicates that results run over and above the INEC accreditation which is indicated on page 7i where the 1st – 5th respondents claimed they hadn’t seen. The issue of whether a computer was used to organize the comparative analysis/summary of the results was also brought up by the respondents to delay the exposure of a flawed electoral process which the PDP claims they won. The tribunal adjourned till Monday 7th of September 2015 for ruling.
