EDODECIDE: APC opens case at tribunal on wrong foot, their two witnesses testify against Obaseki

The Justice Badamosi led Edo State Gubernatorial Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Benin City continues hearing today in the matter of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu (POI) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), on the one hand and Mr Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki (Obaseki), the All Progressives Party (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on the other hand.

The All Progressives Congress opened her case today calling witnesses to support their argument that the election was credible.

Unfortunately two of the witnesses that the APC called discredited themselves and indicted the election by their testimonies.

Obaseki’s First witness, from Ward 5, Unit 24 of Oredo LGA said that he voted during the September 28 election but when he was given the voter register in the unit where he claimed to have voted, his name wasn’t found on the register. Yet, he insisted that he voted.

The question that the petitioners and Edo people are asking him now is “How did he vote?’ The likely implication for this id that the witness is not a credible witness and may be docked for perjury, a crime of lying under oath.

Obaseki’s other witness, from Ward 7, Unit 23 also in Oredo LGA  was left helpless when he was made to calculate the ballot papers used as against what was issued by the Presiding officer of INEC.

What was issued by the presiding officer of INEC was 905 ballot papers. But the ballot papers used and unused during the election was 911 (calculated as 585 Unused and 326 Used making a total of 911).

This figure is greater than the total number of ballot papers issued to the Unit which is 905. This is a clear indication of fraud and over voting and the electoral act states that in such a situation the election result should be invalidated.

According to result declared by INEC, the APC was allocated 120 votes while the PDP was allocated 76 votes in that Unit.

Meanwhile, the Interim Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, and his Deputy stormed out of the court room before then end of proceedings, apparently frustrated by the inaccuracies and inadequacies of their rather disappointing witness.