SAN FRANCISCO, July 15, (THEWILL) – The Presidential Election Tribunal on Monday admitted 48 compact video discs in evidence from the PDP and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in the suit challenging President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory at the February 23, 2019 poll.
The Justice Mohammed Garba-led five-man tribunal held that the objection by the respondents was baseless as the 48 video compact discs sought to be tendered by the petitioners were covered by the agreement reached at the pre-hearing session in respect of the case.
The tribunal unanimously held that as it had been done in respect of other exhibits tendered by the petitioners in line with the pre-hearing agreement, the respondents could only raise their objection to the admissibility of video exhibits and give reasons for it at the final address stage.
The petitioners’ lawyer, Chris Uche SAN, had earlier on Monday presented three witnesses, and he introduced the media adviser and spokesperson for Atiku, Mr. Segun Showunmi, as the petitioners’ next witness to be presented.
He also indicated that there would be the need to play a video clip to the tribunal in the course of Showunmi’s testimony.
But the respondents – Independent National Electoral Commission, Buhari, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) – objected to the application.
Alex Izinyon, Buhari’s lawyer, described the move as an “ambush”.
“Your lordship they are not part of the documents listed,” he said.
Uztaz Usman, INEC counsel, argued that the presentation of the witness and evidence was not part of what the lawyers agreed on.
“What the media will be reporting will be another thing. We were taken by surprise. This does not comply with first schedule of evidence act,” Usman had said.
Thereafter, the tribunal stood down for 1 hour 30 minutes to decide on the ruling.
Upon, resumption, the five-man panel of judges granted the request of the petitioners and held that “no specific evidence is excluded from being tendered as an evidence.”
