Tribunal approves Labour Party’s subpoena for more witnesses

The Presidential Election Petitions Court has approved the subpoena of more Labour Party (LP) witnesses before the court.

The presiding chairman of the court, Justice Haruna Tsammani, on Tuesday announced the approval of the subpoena which are in the court’s secretariat after the LP lawyers drew the attention of the court to it.

The court had on Tuesday began full trial in the petitions by the presidential candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar; Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi; and the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and Chichi Ojei, challenging the victory of President Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Following the conclusion of evidence by LP’s first witness, the lead counsel to LP, Livy Uzoukwu (SAN) informed the court that they had applied for subpoena for the remaining witnesses to appear before the court.

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Earlier, the court admitted four documents labelled as EC11A, EC9, EC11, EC94 comprising the narcotic and money laundering forfeiture judgement of District Court of Northern District, Illinois, Eastern Division, USA; a letter of withdrawal of Kashim Shettima as senatorial candidate of the APC in Borno State and others tendered by the LP.

The LP witness, who tendered the documents, Lawrence Uchechukwu Nnanna Nwakaeti, testified that the documents of the District Court of Illinois, USA in which Tinubu was fined the sum of $460,000 was certified by the Sherrifs in USA.

But under cross examination by APC counsel, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the witness admitted that he did not obtain a certificate from the US which contained fingerprints of Tinubu and the charges against him.

Probed further by Tinubu’s lead counsel, Wole Olanipekun (SAN) on whether the document specifically used the word “fine”, Nwakaeti insisted that he had read through the entire judgement and stand by his evidence that the president was fined $460,000 in the US.

Led in evidence by Jibrin Okutepa (SAN), the witness, who said he was also a voter in the election in Amorka, Ihialla, Anambra State, testified that his affidavit on the forfeiture document was based on facts of the law and not his own conclusions.

When he was asked if he was aware that a legal attache in the US Embassy had on February 4, 2023 signed a certificate of clearance for Tinubu over the forfeiture, he answered in the negative.