Senator Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe, representing Cross River North senatorial district, has tendered 1,531 exhibits and presented 33 witnesses to defend his electoral victory at the Saturday, February 25, 2023 Presidential and National Assembly elections.
Jarigbe, represented by his legal team headed by Mba Ukweni, SAN, also tendered authenticated Certified True Copies, CTCs, of INEC Result Viewing Portal, IREV, and hard copies of forms EC8A1 (Result sheets) to further defend the mandate given to his client at the just concluded general elections.
The Cross River state’s National Assembly Election Petition with Suit No. EPT/CR/SEN/02/2023 is headed by Justice M. A. Sambo as the chairman and C. Akabua and J. Zululu as members. They admitted the tendered exhibits in evidence of the Authentic CTCs (Certified True Copies) of Results from INEC.
Speaking to newsmen in Calabar in-between the day’s proceedings, Mba Ukweni, SAN said initially we had over 500 constituents from the senatorial district who lined up to testify but the tribunal has limited them to 33.
In his words, “we had over 500 witnesses but the Tribunal said we should call a maximum of 33 witnesses but there are many people who are very anxious to testify.
“It took us time to persuade them that many of them are not on the list and they said they want to come and defend their mandate.”
Recalled that Ayade (Petitioner) in his petition had demonstrated all the infractions and irregularities that marred the election, particularly over-voting and mutilation of election results in favour of Jarigbe.
Debunking the claim by the petitioners that the result was rigged, he said: “There was no document they (petitioners) tendered to show that the result was rigged. What they were merely trying to do was to tender declaration of the result, which is Form EC8E1, trying to show that the names of other candidates who lost were not on the declaration of result list.
And we will explain that in our final address.
“That form is meant to declare the winner of the election and not the person who lost. The election is a process, from the polling units to the wards, from the wards to the local government before you go to the Senatorial collation.
“So are they saying the summation of results from the constituency level they are in doubt about the scores of the various parties.
“So it is not until their names and scores are included in Form EC8E1 that we can say they participated or any crooked thing was done.
“No crooked thing was done.
Infact if you had asked him further he would have explained the circumstances because it was their intention (the petitioners) to change the scores and the people themselves resisted.
“The petitioners had intention to change the scores and he (petitioner) was the sitting governor and so had powers to do what he wanted to do but the people of the northern senatorial district resisted.
“It is not just that, once a petition has been filed, it is bound to succeed. Generally, we would have said we are resting our case on their case based on the evidences before us. But What we are doing this to be doubtly sure, thus all cross examinations again to be doubtly sure. It’s like killing an ant with a sledge hammer”, the Senior Advocate stated.
Former Governor Ben Ayade, represented at the Tribunal by a team of lawyers led by Mike Ozekhome, SAN, had earlier presented his witnesses and tendered some documents which was also adopted by the Tribunal.
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