Nasarawa Election Petition tribunal: INEC declines to present witnesses, closes defense

From Daniel Abel, Lafia

Following what the petitioners (Peoples Democratic Party, its guber candidate) described as damning evidences their star witness brought against the victory of governor Sule at the April governorship election in the state, the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) suddenly closed its defence, with a claim that it’s expensive to sponsor witnesses to the Tribunal.

INEC which was the empire that conducted the March 18th, 2023 Governorship and State House of Assembly Elections through its Lead Counsel Isiaka Dikko, SAN failed to tendered from the Bar before the Tribunal Form EC8A’S Series among documents in evidence to support its defense on Friday.

Documents expected to be presented by INEC are Certified true copies (CTC) of form EC40G for 36 Polling Units in Ashige Electoral Ward Lafia LGA, certified true copy of the Form EC40G of a Polling Unit in Gayam Electoral Ward Lafia LGA, Manual copy of Form EC8B for Kanje/Abuni Electoral Ward, Awe LGA.

Others are manual form EC8B for Gayam Electoral Ward Lafia LG, manual form EC8B for Ciroma Electoral Ward Lafia LGA, 13 Manual Form EC8C’s Series for the 13 LGA’S of the State.

Also to be presented by the electoral empire before the Tribunal is manual Form EC8D (Summary of all LGA’S Collation Results at the State Collation Center, manual form EC8E (Declaration of Governorship Nasarawa State and INEC receipt of payments in respect of the above named documents.

In response, the Petitioners lead counsel J. Usman SAN, objected in totality the admissibility of the above tendered documents by the 1st respondent alleging that those documents are worthless pieces of papers and we reserved our further arguments to the Final Address Stage.

Finally, 1st Respondent Counsel remarked that, having participated in the cross-examination of the Petitioners witnesses and elicited evidence therein, I humbly apply on behalf of our client to close our defense.

Evidentially, the INEC may have made it herculian for the APC and governor Sule (2nd & 3rd Respondents) by not tendering Polling Unit Results (Form EC8A’s) in the list of documents so tendered during it defense contrary to the provisions of the 2022 Electoral Act and 2023 General Elections Regulations/Guidelines that.

Meanwhile the 2nd respondent in the petition is billed to open its defense on Saturday