The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Yakubu Mahmood will on Thursday June 15, appear before the Presidential Election Petition Court ( PEPC) to give evidence in the petition by Atiku Abubakar challenging the declaration of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President.
At Tuesday’s proceedings, Lead Counsel for the Peoples Democratic Party Party (PDP) Chief Chris Uche(SAN) announced to the Court that the INEC chairman has been subpoenaed to testify on the conduct of the disputed Presidential election and also tender some sensitive documents that will aid their case.
Uche however, did not disclose the nature of documents the INEC chief would be required to tender.
The senior lawyer told the Justice Haruna Tsammani-led panel that he decided to announce to the court bid to bring Mahmood before the court on Thursday so that the respondents especially Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) would not be caught unaware.
At the proceedings, Atiku 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 Mahmood, INEC’s Commissioner in charge of Voter Education, Mr Festus Okoye, who in their broadcast 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, 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 that 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.
Court admits more exhibits in Obi’s petition against Tinubu
The Labour Party and its presidential candidate in the last election, Peter Obi, on Tuesday, tendered more exhibits as evidence against the declaration of Bola Tinubu as the winner of the presidential election.
The Presidential Election Petition Court admitted the exhibits, which were mainly results sheets and reports used by the Independent National Electoral Commission during the election.
The LP and Obi are challenging the outcome of the election in which Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress was announced as the elected president by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
At the resumed proceedings, counsel for the LP and Obi, Peter Afoba, SAN, tendered forms EC40GPU and EC40G1, which are the summary of registered voters of polling units and local governments where elections were cancelled or did not occur.
The presentation covered 45 EC40GPU forms in 10 local government areas of Niger State, 23 in seven local government areas of Osun, 17 in three local government areas of Edo State and 52 EC40GPU forms in five local government areas of Sokoto.
Obi also tendered 15 forms of EC40G in eight local government areas of Osun State, 12 forms EC40G1 in 12 local government areas of Edo, 15 forms EC40G in four local government areas of Sokoto and nine forms EC40G1 in two local government areas of Sokoto.
The petitioners also tendered five reports on the conduct of the election in Niger State and eight in Edo to back up their allegations of malpractices during the conduct of the election.
Also tendered were INEC Results Viewing 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.
Despite objections against the admissibility of the exhibits by the respondents in the petition: INEC, Tinubu, vice-president Kashim Shetima and the All Progressives Congress, chairman of the PEPC, Justice Haruna Tsammani admitted them as exhibits
The court also adjourned further hearings in the petition to June 14.
