Bayelsa tribunal grants Gov Dickson access to inspect election material

The Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday, gave the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 14 days to get the election materials used in December 5 election and January 9, 2016 supplementary election ready for inspection by Governor Seriake Dickson’s lawyers.

Dickson is defending two petitions filed by Timipre Sylva of the All Progressives Congress and Action Alliance (AA). His application for an order of inspection of the election material brought by his lawyer, Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), was not opposed by Sebastian Hon (SAN) who represented Timipre Sylva.

The Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Alogba Kazeem, granted the order of inspection, but deferred the hearing of a similar application brought by Sylva till today, because Oyetibo opposed some of the items listed for inspection.

Among the 37 materials sought to be inspected were the ballot papers used for the two elections, police security report, video and audio reports, observer’s reports, duplicate copy of the certificate of return issued to Dickson.

Justice Kazeem also fixed the hearing of other applications challenging the competence of some portions of the petition to April 7, 2016, including the one filed by INEC’s lawyer, Mr. Alex Ejezieme.

Meanwhile, there was a mild drama at the sitting on Wednesday when some members of Action Alliance sought to withdraw their petition seeking to nullify Dickson’s election on the ground of unlawful exclusion.

While a lawyer, Oba Maduabuchi, who filed the party’s petition announced appearance with about ten other members of the party – including its National Chairman, Rev Johnson Alozie, another lawyer, Malachy Nnenge, also announced appearance for the party with three other members, including the party National Legal Adviser, Mr.Anuaya Peter, who informed the tribunal that the party wanted to with draw the petition.

Peter told the tribunal that the national leadership of the party did not authorise the filing of the petition.

He further told the tribunal that the petitioners had no mandate of the party to use the name of the party to file the petition.

But Alozie, through Maduabuchi, insisted that the national legal adviser had no locus standi to withdraw a petition he did not file.

He told the tribunal that the national legal adviser of the party took directive from the national think-tank, being the highest decision organ of the party and that there was no resolution before the tribunal from the party mandating him to withdraw the petition.

He, therefore, asked the tribunal to refuse the application of the national legal adviser and allow their petition to be determined on its merit.

The tribunal then adjourned till April 6, 2016.