Kehinde Fajobi
The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal has expressed frustration with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Asue Ighodalo, for failing to produce witnesses in their petition challenging the results of the September 21, 2024, election.
At a hearing on Tuesday, PDP’s counsel, Mr. Adetunji Oyeyipo, SAN, explained that many of their witnesses were unable to attend due to “travel disruptions.”
He requested another hearing date to present witnesses and assured the tribunal that they would work to prepare them adequately.
However, the tribunal, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, was unsatisfied with this explanation, accusing the petitioners of wasting valuable court time.
Justice Kpochi remarked, “What you are just telling us is not good at all! Why then did we ask the other petitioners to take dates? We should have heard them today.”
The petitioners’ counsel reiterated their request for more time, stating that the witnesses were not in the right frame of mind to testify due to their travel challenges. The tribunal adjourned the case until Thursday.
One witness, Mr. Oseyili Anenih, who had been discharged after his testimony, explained that the PDP was contesting results from 765 of Edo’s 4,519 polling units.
Anenih, who served as the party’s Director of Research and Strategy, admitted he was unable to visit all the polling units during the election.
He also acknowledged that the evidence they relied on primarily came from reports submitted by agents and experts. Some results provided by party agents were not signed, but Anenih maintained that if votes were properly collated, Ighodalo would have won the election.
Under cross-examination, Anenih confirmed that they did not have physical access to the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) used during the election, though they had submitted screenshots as evidence.
They had also subpoenaed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to provide the BVAS machines for review.
In further questioning, he explained that local government collation agents had brought election results directly to him because they were denied access to the State Collation Centre.
While he admitted some results were not legible or stamped by INEC, he maintained that the few stamped results were significant.
The PDP and Ighodalo’s petition seeks to annul the election on the grounds of non-compliance with the Electoral Act, claiming that Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not win the most valid votes.