Just as it did on Wednesday, the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) again failed to produce any witnesses to defend the declaration of Senator Monday Okpebholo as winner of last 21 September 21 governorship election in Edo State, a matter of dispute at the state election petition tribunal sitting in Abuja.
The commission’s lead counsel, Chief Kanu Agabi, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), therefore said that his team had closed its defence in the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and its candidate in the disputed election, Dr. Asue Ighodalo.
On Wednesday, the legal team of INEC, which was billed to open its defence, could not do so, and pleaded with the Justice Wilfred Kpochi-led tribunal for an adjournment to Thursday.
One of the commission’s counsel, Mr. Abdullahi Aliyu (SAN), proceeded to tender three documents, which had already been presented by the petitioners.
Agabi had told the tribunal 24 hours later that the commission had a line-up of five witnesses that would give evidence to support the result it declared in favour of Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who is the second respondent in the case. INEC persuaded the tribunal to adjourn the case till Thursday, stressing that the witnesses would come to Abuja from Benin, Edo State.
But at the resumed hearing of the petition on Thursday, INEC announced, through Agabi, that they would be closing their case due to their inability to present witnesses. Agabi said that his team shelved the idea of bringing witnesses, after it reviewed the case.
He told the tribunal: ‘My lords, after we left you yesterday (Wednesday), we gave more thought to the matter and came to the conclusion that the sensible thing to do is to close the case of the first respondent, which we hereby do’.
On their part, the PDP and its candidate, Ighodalo said they were not surprised by the development.
‘Frankly speaking, we are not surprised and it is well within the right of the first respondent to show such a good discretion. We are not objecting’, the petitioners’ counsel, Mr. Adetunji Oyeyipo (SAN) said.
Both Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), who appeared for Okpebholo and Mr. D. C. Dewigwe, who represented the APC, said they were not opposed to INEC’s decision.
Consequently, the panel adjourned the matter till Monday for Okpebholo to open his defence to the petition.
INEC had declared that Okpebholo of the APC secured 291, 667 votes to defeat his closet rivalry, Ighodalo of the PDP, who got a total of 247, 655 votes.
Aggrieved by the outcome of the poll, the PDP and its candidate approached the tribunal, praying it to nullify INEC’s declaration of the APC and Okpebholo as winners of the contest.
Among other things, the petitioners contended that the governorship election was invalid by reason of alleged non-compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act.
They equally argued in the petition marked: EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024, that governor Okpebholo of the APC did not secure the highest number of lawful votes that were cast at the election.
Satisfied with evidence of 19 witnesses that testified and tendered several documents in support of their case, the petitioners closed their case on Monday.
INEC had earlier produced and tendered before the tribunal, a total of 153 Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines that were used in the 133 polling units where results of the election are disputed.
The commission equally tendered in evidence, a certified copy of the result of the governorship election.
