The Peoples Democratic Party and its governorship candidate in the September 21 election, Asue Ighodalo, on Thursday, presented four additional witnesses before the Election Petition Tribunal in their ongoing efforts to prove allegations of irregularities in the election.
This brings the total number of witnesses called by the petitioners to ten, the largest since the case commenced.
The PDP and Ighodalo are challenging the Independent National Electoral Commission’s declaration of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress as the winner of the election. The witnesses disputed results from polling units in Esan North East, Oredo, Esan South East, and Esan Central Local Government Areas of Edo State.
At the resumed hearing of the petition, marked EPT/ED/GOV/02/2024, the PDP Esan North East Local Government Area Collation Agent, Mr. Igbarase Matthias, testified in support of the petitioners. Matthias prayed the tribunal to admit his sworn statement, dated October 11, 2024, in which he alleged overvoting in nine polling units.
According to Matthias, his claims were based on certified true copies of INEC documents, including the Voters Register, Forms EC25B and EC8A, the INEC election manual booklet, screenshots of the IREV copies of Form EC8A, and the BIVAS accreditation report. He also submitted IREV-certified copies of results sheets and duplicate polling unit results sheets of Form EC8A as evidence.
During cross-examination by INEC’s lead counsel, Kanu Agabi, Matthias confirmed that his deposition was made on October 11, 2024, while the screenshots of the INEC BIVAS report were certified on January 8, 2025. He acknowledged that PDP Unit and Ward Agents signed the election result sheets but clarified that he did not function as a unit or ward agent.
Similarly, the PDP Collation Agent for Oredo Local Government Area, Aigbe Ighodaro Lucky, alleged overvoting in 66 polling units and claimed INEC entered incorrect scores in favour of the APC. He stated that his findings were based on INEC documents, which he adopted as evidence in the petition.
Ighodaro also noted that serial numbers of sensitive materials deployed for the election were not recorded in Form EC25B. When cross-examined, he admitted that while he relied on INEC documents, he did not personally examine any BIVAS machines used during the election.
In his testimony, Adekunle Oboh, the PDP Collation Agent for Esan Central, pointed out irregularities in 23 polling units. He told the tribunal that sensitive materials deployed to polling units were not recorded in Form EC25B. He confirmed that polling unit results sheets were signed by party agents up to the ward level before he signed Form EC8C.
Wilson Ibhawa, the PDP Collation Agent for Esan South East, corroborated claims of irregularities, stating that there was no recording of serial numbers for sensitive materials in Form EC25B for five polling units in his area.
Justice Wilfred Kpochi, Chairman of the Tribunal, admitted the submitted documents provisionally, pending the respondents’ counsel’s arguments. He adjourned the proceedings to Friday, January 24, 2025, for the continuation of the hearing.