The petitioners claim that the materials include printed IREV results, BVAS reports, ECAs, voter registration lists, and INEC forms.
In an effort to prevent Governor Dapo Abiodun, an All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, from winning the March 18, 2023 governorship election, the Ogun State branch of the PDP and its governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, have submitted 8,000 documents as exhibits.
In the election, Abiodun received 276,298 votes while Adebutu received 262,383.
Due to claimed violations of the Electoral Act and suspected corrupt activities during the election, Adebutu is contesting Abiodun’s victory.
The documents were handed to the tribunal, which was seated at the Magistrate court in Isabo, Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, by Adebutu’s attorney, Goddy Uche (SAN), who was wearing a ‘Ghana-must-go’ bag.
He asked that the documents be accepted by the three-person panel as evidence against Abiodun.
The petitioner’s attorney stated that the court’s directive in its pre-hearing report that both petitioners and respondents should produce their documentation for their cases was followed when the “exhibits” were presented.
Uche said that he had served a 98-page schedule of documents specifying all the documents that were to be presented to the court on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Abiodun, and the APC, the first, second, and third respondents, respectively.
He lists the documents as including voter registration lists, printed IREV results, BVAS reports, ECAs, and INEC forms.
Additionally, he asked the court to permit him to summon his witnesses before the trial began.
Peter Olatunbora, the attorney for INEC, quickly opposed to Uche’s requests, claiming that the petitioners ought to have given the respondents access to the documents before bringing them to the court.
The petitioner did not follow the established protocol for putting papers before the court, according to the attorney for Abiodun, Kehinde Ogunwunmiju (SAN), who requested that the court deny admitting the documents as evidence.
He requested that the materials be made available to the respondents for three days so they may review them before the court admitted them as evidence.
In his argument, Kunle Kalejaye (SAN), the attorney for the APC, accused the petitioner of trying to pressure the court into accepting the documents as evidence.
“I just saw the application today; it was served to us quite late yesterday (Monday). Instead of trying to pressure the court into accepting the documents as evidence, the petitioner should give us adequate time to review them, Kalejaye added.
In his order, Justice Hamidu Kunaza, the tribunal’s chairman, gave the petitioners two days to permit the respondents to examine the documents.
Kunaza postponed the hearing to July 6th.
Adebutu’s attorney said in a statement to the media shortly after the decision: “We came with all our documents, in fact, we came with more than ten bags full of documents, and yesterday we also put out a schedule of documents where we detailed all the documents we are going to tender. It will have 8,000 INEC papers, documents, BVAS reports, ECAs, voter registers, and even the printout from the IREV. It is around 98 pages long.
The respondents, however, stated that they need time to go and review the paperwork. Well, we decided that they can go and look at them in the interest of a fair hearing.
“As we have informed the Tribunal, we are extremely prepared to move forward; in fact, if the Tribunal desired, we would summon our witnesses as soon as tomorrow; however, as things stand, we will bring our documents and witnesses tomorrow.
The Tribunal even ordered the Respondents to submit their own documents and demonstrate, but amusingly, they haven’t brought a single document despite the fact that we are in this room today.
