Barring last minute changes, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmoud Yakubu will on Thursday June 15, appear before the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) to give evidence in a petition filed by Peoples Democratic party (PDP) presidential candidate Alhaji Atiku Abubakar challenging the declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President.
Barring last minute changes, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmoud Yakubu will on Thursday June 15, appear before the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) to give evidence in a petition filed by Peoples Democratic party (PDP) presidential candidate Alhaji Atiku Abubakar challenging the declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President.
Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has already been subpoenaed by the Alhaji Abubakar’s legal team led by Chief Chris Uche, Senior Advocate of Nigeria ( SAN). At Tuesday’s proceedings, Chief Uche announced to the Court that the INEC chairman will during his appearance testify on the conduct of the disputed Presidential election and also tender some sensitive documents in aid of the Presidential candidate of the PDP.
He, however, did not disclose the nature of documents the INEC chief would be required to tender. The learned silk told the Justice Haruna Tsammani led panel that he decided to announce to the court his bid to bring Prof. Mahmoud before the court on Thursday so that the respondents especially President Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) would not be caught unaware.
At the Tuesday proceedings, Alhaji Abubakar called his first star witness, Dr Alex Adum Ter, a legal practitioner and former Attorney General of Benue State, who in his testimony alleged that the presidential election was marred with a lot of irregularities and non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022.
The witness, who was the National Coordinator, Situation Room for PDP on the February 25 presidential election had tendered three different video clips featuring Prof Mahmood Yakubu, INEC’s National Commissioner in charge of Voter Education, Mr Festus Okoye Esq, who in their broadcasts assured Nigerians that presidential election results would be electronically transmitted to make the election credible and transparent.
The third video involving European Union Election Observer Mission was admitted as exhibits by the court alongside Guidelines for Election Officers 2022 and Manual for Election Guidelines 2023.
Although, President Tinubu and APC objected vehemently against the admissibility of the documents, Justice Tsammani admitted them after which the video clips were played in the open court. The witness also tendered screen shots of the IReV portal.
Under cross examination by INEC’s lawyer, Mr Abubakar Mahmoud, SAN, the witness admitted that he was not at the National Collation Center but was at the PDP situation room in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). He also admitted not being an ICT experts but that he based his report from information obtained from agents of the PDP at the collation centers.
The witness faulted INEC for not transmitting presidential election results electronically, adding that calculation errors led the electoral body into grave errors . Also cross examined by Chief Akin Olujimi SAN, who represented President Tinubu, the witness said he came to the conclusion that the presidential election was invalid by reason of corrupt electoral practices as related to him by PDP agents.
Meanwhile, further hearing in the petition has been shifted to June 14.
Also on Tuesday, Mr. Peter Obi, Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) and his party tendered more documents in evidence at the Presidential Election Court. Respondents to the petition are the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), President Bola Tinubu, Vice-President Kashim Shettima, and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The documents tendered by Mr. Obi at the presidential election court are mainly results sheets, and INEC reports on the conduct of the presidential election. Counsel to the Petitioners, Mr. Peter Afoba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), tendered forms EC40GPU, EC40G1 and reports prepared by INEC after the election.
A total of 45 EC40GPU forms were tendered in 10 Local Government Areas of Niger State and 23 in seven Local Government Areas of Osun State. Others are 17 in three Local Government Areas of Edo State, and 52 EC40GPU forms in five Local Government Areas of Sokoto were tendered.
The petitioners also tendered 15 forms EC40G in eight Local Government Areas of Osun State and 12 forms EC40G1 in 12 Local Government Areas of Edo State. Mr. Afoba also tendered 15 forms EC40G in four Local Government Areas of Sokoto and nine forms EC40G1 in two Local Government Areas of Sokoto State.
He also tendered five reports on the conduct of the election in Niger and eight in Edo to back up their allegations of malpractices during the conduct of the election.
The Petitioners tendered also were INEC Results Viewing (IRev) reports in 21 Local Government Areas of Adamawa State, 20 in Ogun State, 16 in Ekiti State, 19 in Rivers State, and 25 in Akwa Ibom State.
Forms EC40G are the documents detailing total voters in a place where voting did not occur or was cancelled, and EC40GPU when it happened in a polling unit.
The court admitted all the documents in evidence and marked them as exhibits although all counsels to the respondents objected to the admissibility of all the documents tendered.
The five-person panel led by the Presiding Judge, Justice Haruna Tsammani adjourned until Wednesday for further hearing of the petition.
