Edo Tribunal: Again, INEC fails to open defence
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC for the second time in one week failed to open its defence as it asked the Edo elections tribunal sitting in Benin City, to adjourn proceedings till Monday 20 February 2017, pleading inability to access its witnesses.
The commission which had ten days at its disposal to respond to the petition by the Peoples Democratic Party,PDP and its candidate in the 2016 governorship election in the state, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, will have only five days left for its defence when the tribunal resumes sitting on Monday.
It had on February 14 this year asked for adjournment till Friday 17th February, pleading inability to reach out to its witnesses including Electoral officers and Polling Officers who are mostly serving civil servants or discharged members of the NYSC.
While asking for the adjournment today and in what appeared to be a face-saving effort, the commission’s counsel Mr Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN said, “We have made copious cross examination of witnesses to the petitioner and there are few areas we need to confront by tendering our evidence, in order to get something straight, after which we will call our witnesses.”
He then went ahead to tender ten copies of the form EC8A for Uhunwonde local government area in Edo south senatorial distrct of the state, which counsel to the PDP, Kemi Pinheiro, SAN initially objected to but later accepted after comparing them to be those the commission submitted and were admitted as evidence and labelled exhibits by the tribunal.
The Chairman of the three~ member tribunal Justice Ahmed Badamasi in his ruling said Friday will be counted as one of the ten days allotted INEC as first respondent, it should use it to draw up a schedule of proceedings to be served on all parties by 6pm Friday.
He also ruled that Saturday the 18th February 2017 which wil not be counted for INEC will be used by all parties to verify the INEC submitted documents admitted by the tribunal and labelled exhibits 1R1.
