From Yakubu Busari, Jos
PDP Gov Candidate, Jeremaih Useni in brown suit with Deputy, Dr James Dalop arriving the court on Tuesday, incumbent governor, Simon Lalong, left.
Counsels to both parties at the Tribunal on Tuesday
Tension rose during continuation of cross- examination of the Petitioners’ witnesses at the on going hearing of petitions at the Plateau state Governorship Election Tribunal, on Tuesday.
A total 17 witnesses were cross- examined between yesterday and today, Tuesday.
With lead Counsel, Chief Mike Ozekhome away to attend to pressing matters, Hon Edward Gyang Pwajok, SAN, Mr Benson Esq, Chief Sunday Odey Esq and other notable lawyers are stood in for the Petitioners, Sen JT Useini and the PDP.
At issues is the allegation that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, manipulated, mutilated and inflated figures in 2019 governorship election.
Alh Rabiu Ismail is businessman who testified before the three- man governorship tribunal disclosed that as an agent of the People Democratic Party, PDP, in 2019 governorship election in Wase local government Area of plateau state.
Rabiu who earlier adopt his written witness statement of 13th April, 2019 said in paragraph (3) of his witness statement that in his polling unit “where I was an agent, APC score 210 votes and it was inflated to 356 votes by the APC agents.”
On his cross examination by the counsel to APC, Garba Pwull on why he agreed to sign the result sheet having discovered the discrepancies, he Rabiu, said “when I signed the result sheet they had not changed the result, they changed the result after I had signed the result sheet”.
On what happened to the result which figure was inflated, Rabiu said he ” I submitted the changed result to the presiding officer “.
Another witness Mr Musa Bello, a teacher who appeared under the Parents Teachers Association (PTA) in Wase local government said in his polling unit there was massive electoral malpractice.
Speaking of paragraph (6) of his written statement on oath, he said ” I work edwith other three agents in Angwan Hausa polling unit in Wase local government.”
On further cross examination, whether he reported the case of the electoral malpractice contained on witness statement in paragraph (6) to the security on duty, he said “yes but nothing was done about it.”
Yesterday some others who appeared and testified before the Tribunal
Justice Halima Salesman had on Monday agreed with the objections raised by the petitioners Counsel against the presentations by the respondent counsels.
This was after General Jeremiah Useini, rtd, and the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, petitioners, had tendered the third set of exhibit documents before the Governorship Tribunal sitting in Jos, Plateau State to support their petitions challenging the victory of the Governor Simon Bako Lalong at the 2019 governorship elections.
Counsel to the petitioners, Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN, pleaded with the Tribunal to adopt the documents as exhibit in support of Useni and PDP’s petition against the Lalong at the Tribunal.
These documents were INEC duplicate copies of statements of the results, on EC8A forms and their Certified True Copies for Polling Units in some Ward Registrations Areas of Wase and Jos North Local Government Areas of the State.
Some other Polling Units include Gobirawa of Kuyanbana wards Registration Area as pleaded on the volume one of the petitioners’ documents earlier admitted before the Tribunal.
So also are certified true copies of INEC results for Gadan Alasiri, Naraguta A ward, Rikkos , Jos Jarawa , Kasuwan Dare, Yan’shanu, Community Center, Alikazaure, Abdul Salami, are all the polling Units and wards registration Areas across these two affected Local Government Areas of Plateau State.
Others areas also include are Yan’kaji, and Asibitin Kutare Polling uit of Ali Kazaure ward registration Area, School Lane-one Polling unit of Abba NaShehu Ward registration Area all in Jos North Local Government Area among others.
Having displayed the documents before the Tribunal, Counsel to the Petitioner, thereafter sought to tender them sequentially, as the Tribunal further ruled according to the Petitioner’s prayers.
On their parts, Counsel to the Governor, 1st Respondent, the governor, said they will object to the submission at an appropriate time, while the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and Election Officer, who are the 2nd and 3rd respondents, both said they will raise their objections concerning the submission after articulating their views as their comments are been kept reserved for the moment.
One of the witnesses, Sanusi Nuhu living in Abba NaShehu area, who admitted to signing an exhibit statement before the Tribunal on the April 13, 2019, recognised and affirmed his signature and testified during examinations that, he had no quarrel with the exhibit B27 INEC results pink sheet but that the results were not same as the one he signed at the polling unit.
Another witness Abdullahi Danbade of Naraguta A, Gadan Alhassan Polling Unit, having pleaded with the Tribunal for the adoption of witness statement to serve as an exhibit, also went through examination by 1st, 2nd, and 3rd respondents and testified that he was at the polling unit during the exercise and also cast his votes.
Danbade said that he signed the results at the completion of the entry on the results sheet but there were no alterations as he saw on the sheets on Monday. Hence the changes were not made in his presence.
Baba Ali Adam who’s name as called by the Petitioner carries acronyms could not make his point as the Counsel raised an objection to the attached acronyms not been part of what was contained in the witnesses lists in the Petitioner’s documents. He leaned his arguments on the paragraph 4, 5a of the 1st schedule of the Electoral Act, which deals with elections Petitions matter.
Responding to the Respondent’s objections on that note, the Petitioners described the objection as a gross misconception of the Electoral Act, adding that the Act gave all directions on all matters concerning witnesses dwelling his point on paragraph 6 of the 1st schedule of the Electoral Act.
Ozekhome read the relevant portions of the Act to back his arguments, saying that on that note, ” once a Petition has been accepted for filing, it has to be taken as it is”. He further referred the court to elections Tribunal and court practice traditions.
