Tribunal Admits Statistics Report From Atiku’s Forensic Examiner
- Tinubu, APC, INEC counsels ready to cross-examine witness today
BY SEGUN ADEBAYO – The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) on Wednesday admitted in evidence statistics reports of inspectors tendered by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Atiku Abubakar, against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declaration of All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Tinubu, as winner of the February 25 presidential election.
The three-volume bound reports were tendered by Atiku’s forensic examiner and statistician, Samuel Oduntan with the adjourning till today (Thursday) to enable the respondents to cross-examine the witness.
Oduntan, the petitioners’ 21st witness (PW21), is a statistician and a subpoenaed witness. He was led in evidence by counsel to the petitioners, Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), who adopted his statement on oath, though this was objected to by all the respondents, Abubakar Mahmoud, (SAN) for INEC; Wole Olanipakun (SAN) for President Tinubu, and Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) for the APC.
In objecting to the tendering of the statistician‘s report from the inspection of the election, alongside the three appendages, the respondents’ counsels, Olujimi and Fagbemi however declined to give their consent to the admissibility of the documents.
Their argument before the Tribunal was that the petitioners never mentioned that the documents would be demonstrated.
Atiku’s counsel, Jegede informed the Tribunal that the evidence-in-chief of the witness be taken on the spot (Wednesday) while the cross-examination would be tomorrow (Thursday) June 15, 2023.
Interestingly, all the respondents ‘counsel confirmed having met and agreed on the proposal made by the petitioner’s counsel.
The five-member panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani thereafter adjourned until Thursday for cross-examination of the witness and further hearing of the petition by Alhaji Atiku and the PDP
