ABUJA, Nigeria – Witnesses from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, have testified on Friday, June 9, 2023, before the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, shedding light on procedures during the recent presidential election.
The testimonies came in response to a petition filed by former Vice President and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, against the election of President Bola Tinubu.
Led by petitioner’s lead counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, Abedemi Joseph, a staff of INEC, was one of those who gave evidence in court.
Joseph, who acted as a presiding officer in Niger State during the February 25, 2023, presidential elections, recounted being instructed by INEC not to provide copies of election results to political party agents who refused to sign the result sheet.
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Another INEC presiding officer, who oversaw proceedings in Edo State, reported unsuccessful attempts to upload the presidential election results to the INEC server.
Similarly, a subpoenaed witness from Kogi State, Grace Ajagbonna, confirmed the peaceful conduct of the election but expressed dissatisfaction with her inability to transmit results to the server.
Despite these testimonies, legal representatives for INEC, APC, and other respondents objected to the admissibility of the statements made on oath by the subpoenaed witnesses in support of Atiku’s petition.
Abubakar Mahmoud, SAN, representing INEC, and Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, representing APC, were among those opposing the move.
Atiku’s lawyer, Chris Uche, urged the court to dismiss these objections and grant his request.
Following these exchanges, the five-man panel, led by Justice Haruna Tsammani, deferred their ruling on the applications.
Further hearings on the case have been adjourned until June 10, 2023.
The court’s decision on these applications will set the tone for the remaining stages of the election petition trial.
