Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The Presidential Election Petitions Court, PEPC, Wednesday, rejected 10 out of 13 witnesses presented by the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi.
Chairman of the five-man tribunal, Justice Haruna Tsammani, while delivering judgment on Obi’s substantive petition, said that out of the 13 witnesses called by Obi, only three witnesses whose statements were on oath were filed along with the petition.
According to the tribunal, the remaining 10 witnesses were subpoenaed and their witness statements on oath were only filed after the hearing started.
The tribunal held that by virtue of section 285 of the Nigerian constitution, section 137(7) of the Electoral Act 2022, and other provisions, every witness statement on oath must be filed along with the petition.
According to the tribunal, once the 21-day window for filing an election petition elapses, the content of the petition cannot be amended based on the Supreme Court authority.
It held that no additional statement on oath can be filed after the close of the specified window since the respondents would not have the opportunity to respond.
Ikengaonline reports that the tribunal is yet to deliver its final verdict as at the time of filing this report.
