The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) intensified its electoral challenge on Friday at the Edo Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, calling additional witnesses to dispute the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Monday Okpebholo, in the September 21, 2024 governorship election.
During the proceedings led by the Justice Wilfred Kpochi-led panel, five witnesses presented their testimonies in Abuja, alleging instances of over-voting in their respective polling units. Lawyers representing the APC, Okpebholo, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) firmly rejected these claims.
The PDP, along with its governorship candidate, Asue Ighodalo, contests the election results, having lodged a petition against INEC, Okpebholo, and the APC, who are named as the 1st to 3rd respondents in the tribunal’s proceedings. The petitioners are seeking the annulment of the election results, asserting that the electoral process was fraught with irregularities.
Under the guidance of their counsel, Rotimi Ogunesan, SAN, witness Haruna Ibrahim, a 34-year-old businessman from Sabo Quarters, Auchi, adopted his witness statement while testifying as the 15th petitioner’s witness (PW-15).
During cross-examination by INEC’s attorney, Kanu Agabi, SAN, Ibrahim acknowledged signing the result sheet for his ward but clarified that he did so solely to obtain a copy for his party. When asked whether this signature indicated the election’s credibility, Ibrahim firmly disagreed.
Agabi further inquired if Ibrahim had filed a formal protest regarding his concerns. Ibrahim responded, “I made a complaint to the unit officer. I protested, but not in writing. I did not file a written complaint.”
As the cross-examination continued by Okpebholo’s counsel, Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, Ibrahim reiterated his assertion of over-voting in his polling unit. In contrast, Ikpeazu referenced the result sheet which purportedly showed no such over-voting.
“Look at the ward result containing your polling unit. The reconciled result shows no over-voting,” Ikpeazu stated, displaying the relevant document. Ibrahim maintained, “The total votes cast exceeded the recorded votes. I made an official protest, but my efforts for cancellation were declined.”
He also pointed to discrepancies between the figures on the presented result sheet and those recorded on election day, stating, “This form is from my unit, but the figures do not correspond to the records from my unit.”
Counsel for the APC, Dan Orbih, contested Ibrahim’s claims, arguing that the result sheet validated the absence of over-voting, further challenging him to recount the figures independently. The tribunal accepted as evidence the witness’s agent card despite objections from the respondents’ legal representatives, with the tribunal preserving its judgment on the admissibility of this evidence.
Other witnesses included Esther Okuo, a 27-year-old farmer from Igarra, Akoko-Edo LGA (PW-16); Abubakar Uzairu, a teacher from Owan East LGA (PW-17); Asuluka Righteousness, a motorcyclist from Enwan, Akoko-Edo LGA (PW-18); and Mutairu Yusuf, a farmer from Agbede, Etsako West LGA (PW-19).
The tribunal has scheduled the next hearing for February 3.
