INEC on Monday prayed the Kogi Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja to dismiss a petition filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP), and its candidate, Murtala Ajaka, against the victory of Gov. Usman Ododo.
INEC on Monday prayed the Kogi Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja to dismiss a petition filed by the Social Democratic Party , and its candidate, Murtala Ajaka, against the victory of Gov. Usman Ododo.
However, Ajaka’s lawyer, Pius Akubo, have urged the tribunal to discountenance the respondents’ submissions and uphold their petition.It would be recalled that Ajaka had challenged Ododo’s victory in the Nov. 11, 2023 Kogi governorship poll.The tribunal had, on April 25, fixed Monday for adoption of final written addresses after parties closed their case in the matter.
He argued that the Appeal Court had decided that if the grounds of a petition are inconsistent with one another, and are not consistent with the reliefs, it should be struck out. “In this case, the depositions adopted represent just about 3.6 per cent of their witness depositions,” he said.Agabi said that in a mathematical calculation of evidence, 3.6 per cent of Ajaka’s witness deposition adopted in the petition amounted to a failure and, therefore, ought to be dismissed.He said the petitioners equally failed to file the witness deposition before hand in contravention of the Supreme Court’s decision in Obungado’s case.
He argued that out of the 25 witnesses called by the petitioners, there was no single polling unit agent among them.“Besides, the star witness could not distinguish between what he heard and what he saw when questions were put to him,” he said.While adopting his final written address dated and filed on May 1, Daudu, who appeared for Gov. Ododo, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition in its entirety.
He also urged the tribunal to dismiss the allegations of forgery against his client, saying it bordered on pre-election matter, which the apex court had decided in Gbagi’s case against INEC.
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