PDP & Atiku/Obi: 10 Days of Legal Exposition

Presidential Election Petition Tribunal

PDP & Atiku/Obi: 10 Days of Legal Exposition 

Between Thursday July 1, 2019 to Friday July 19, 2019, the legal team of the Petitioners, the PDP and Atiku/Obi presented over 50,000 evidences and 62 witnesses before the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal. 

Major Highlights:

Most of the witnesses that testified before the court spoke on the failures of INEC and use of Security Agents by the APC to rig the elections in favour its Candidates.

INEC failures: 

The witnesses testified as follows: 

1. That INEC flaunted most of its Guidelines in the conduct of the 2019 General Elections. Of particular interest is the use of smart card reader.   

The INEC in its guidelines for the 2019 General Elections made the use of smart card reader a compulsory requirements in the conduct of the elections. 

The commission stated that in areas or units where smart card readers were not used during accreditation, elections should be canceled in those polling units, but this was not what transpired in the last general elections. 

2. Pasting of Form EC8As at the polling units is also a compulsory requirements in the electoral act 2010 (as amended). But as reported by most of the witnesses in both their witness statements and during cross examination, the results of the election at the polling units in most states of the federation were not pasted at the units as required by law. 

3. Cancellation of votes at the collation centers. Most witnesses told the court that results of elections were blatantly cancelled by INEC at Collation centers as against the provisions of the law. 

4. Late arrival of sensitive materials: Polling was supposed to commence from 8:00am and close by 2:00pm but this was not the case as reported by the witnesses. In most cases, INEC presiding officers arrived late to the polling units without results sheets and other sensitive materials. 

5. Bribery and other infractions: In Nasarawa state and some other states of the federation, witnesses told the court that INEC officers were caught collecting bribe between 5 to 10,0000 dollars. They stated that these incidences were reported to the authorities but nothing was done. 

Security Agents/APC 

1. In Borno, Yobe and some other states, witnesses testified that voters were subdued by security agents to hand over their ballot papers after accreditation to security agents to thump print on their behalf for any candidate of their choice. 

2. In Kogi, Lagos and other southwest states, witnesses testified that security agents led thugs loyal to APC to polling units, especially units perceived to be strongholds of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to disrupt elections and burnt both  ballot boxes and papers

3. Over voting: In Yobe, Kano, Katsina, Bauchi, Borno, Nasarawa, Plateau, Kogi, Sokoto, Jigawa, Kebbi and others, witnesses reported how figures declared by INEC does not tally with the total number of registered voters in those polling units and accredited voters  

4. Ballot stuffing and snatching: Witnesses reported how security agents aided APC members at the polling units to snatch and stuff ballot boxes in favour of the APC Presidential Candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. 

Perjury: 

In the course of hearings, the PDP and Atiku/Obi’s legal team presented several documents and witnesses to the court, highlighting the infractions of the APC Presidential Candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. 

The PDP and Atiku/Obi exposed how President Buhari lied on oath in aid of his qualification by deposing to a false claim in an affidavits he presented to the court. 

In INEC form CF001, President Buhari mentioned schools that were never in existence as of the time he made the claims. 

The President also failed to present the certificates of the institutions he stated in his forms. 

Presentation of video tapes: 

The PDP and Atiku/Obi submitted 48 video tapes to the court in line with evidence act of 2011. Four of the video tapes were shown in court 

The tapes exposed how both INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu and a commissioner in Akwa Ibom, Mr. Mike Igini told Nigerians that results of the Presidential election will be transmitted live to its server to show transparency and openness. 

The tapes also show how the military in 2014 told Nigerians that they don’t have records of President Buhari’s credentials/certificates 

Closing day:

At the close of hearing on Friday, July 19, 2019, the team presented two expert witnesses and a star witness. 

Controversial INEC Server 

Mr. David Nyangor is a computer analyst from Kenya. He was Subpoenaed to testify before the court on the true situation of the controversial INEC server. 

During his testimony, Mr. Nyangor demonstrated how INEC transmitted results of the February 23, 2019 Presidential Election to its central server as promised by the commission before the general elections. 

He told the court that he got his information from a whistleblower website, www.factsdontlieng.com, which was created and managed by a technical staff of INEC. 

He sald that the above named website has all the contents of the INEC server and from available information, the former Vice President of Nigeria and Candidate of the PDP in in the last Presidential Election, Atiku Abubakar won the APC by a margin of over 1.8 million votes. 

Mr. Nyangor exposed INEC complicity on the issue of the server and with regards to the security information he provided. 

He gave the court the Internet protocol (IP) address of the supposed INEC and other backend login details. 

Finally, the PDP National Collation Agent, Mr. Osita Chidioka presented evidences before the court to justify the illegality of INEC, security and APC agents in the February 23, 2019 Presidential Election. 

He told the court how INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu told various stakeholders before the elections that the commission will transmit results of the Presidential Election to its server. 

It’s time to #RescueNigeria