There is palpable tension among members of the All Progressives Congress and that of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State as the Court of Appeal sitting in Lagos, delivers its judgement on the appeal filed by PDP’s Ladi Adebutu against Governor Dapo Abiodun.
Daily Trust reports that the court heard the appeal on November 14 and reserved its judgement.
Our correspondent that Justice Hamidu Kunaza led tribunal had on September 30 dismissed the petition filed by PDP and Adebutu for lacking merit.
The tribunal held that the petitioners failed to prove allegations of over voting, rigging and non compliance in the election.
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Not satisfied by the judgement Adebutu and his party approach the Court of Appeal to challenge the tribunal’s ruling.
Legal counsel representing both parties appeared before the court for hearing of the appeal on Tuesday November 14.
Addressing the court, Abiodun, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), urged for the dismissal of the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Ladi Adebutu.
They told the 3-man panel of justices, led by Justice Joseph Shagbaor Ikyegh that the appeal by Adebutu and PDP, lacked merit and was ambitious.
Leading the charge, counsel to first Respondent (INEC), A.J. Owonikoko SAN urged the Court to dismiss the appeal for lacking in merit.
Reacting to the issue of 49,000 disenfranchised voters, raised by the Appellants’ counsel (Chief Chris Uche SAN), Owonikoko referred to paragraphs 4.37 to 4.40 at pages 18 and 19 of his Brief to point out that Appellants only called 48 witnesses.
He maintained that in cases of disenfranchisement, all the disenfranchised voters must be called as witnesses but Appellants did not do so and concluded that the Court cannot amplify 48 witnesses to 49,000 witnesses as Appellants want.
Counsel to the 2nd Respondent (Prince Abiodun), Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN, stated that contrary to the position set out by Chief Uche SAN, the recent decision of the Supreme Court in the Atiku v. INEC case completely encapsulates the issues in the appeal.
He argued that in that appeal, the Supreme Court simply adopted in toto the decision of the Court of Appeal, adding that incidentally, the same Samuel Oduntan who was rejected as a witness by the Court of Appeal in Atiku’s case metamorphosed as PW 93 in the appeal under consideration.
In response to the Court’s demand, Chief Olanipekun promised to provide a copy of the judgment.
Olanipekun SAN also emphasized pages 3-5 of his Brief where he identified about 8 key findings of the Trial Tribunal that Appellants did not challenge, paragraph 4.3 of the Brief arguing that Appellants have abandoned about 5 Grounds of Appeal, and issue 3 at page 17 of 2nd Respondent’s Brief where 2nd Respondent argued that Trial Tribunal rightly struck out paragraphs of the Appellants’ pleadings.
On the margin of lead, Olanipekun argued that there was nothing to even consider on margin of lead and urged the Court to dismiss the appeal for lacking merit.
Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, appearing for the third Respondent (APC), argued that all the witnesses who could be said to have given substantial evidence in this appeal did so on subpoenas and thus were rightly discountenanced. He too urged the Court to dismiss the appeal.
Uche, counsel to the Appellants had noted that there is a distinction between the facts in the Supreme Court decision in Atiku v. INEC & 2 Ors and his clients’ appeal as cited by the 2nd Respondent in support of the First and Second Issues raised.
He also told the judges that Appellants called 94 witnesses, half of which were Polling Unit Agents, adding that on the issue of margin of lead, that elections did not hold in 99 Polling Units based on which about 41,000 votes were excluded.
He also pointed out that up to 37,000 ballot papers utilised by INEC were either not thumb printed or carried multiple thumb prints.
Calling on the appeal to be allowed, Uche said when the 41,000 and 37,000 votes are utilised, the declaration of Governor Abiodun would have been set aside.
Our correspondent reports that the appellate court would be delivering its judgement this morning by 9am.
Already, members of both parties have left Ogun State to attend the court proceedings in Lagos State.
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