Gov’shp Tribunal: Ayade’s counsel vows to challenge judge’s decision to allow PDP’s witness speak

Prof. Mike Ozekhome SAN, Lead Counsel of All Progressives Congress, APC, and former Governor Ben Ayade, who petitioned the election petition tribunal over his loss at the 25 February 2023 Cross River North senatorial election to Senator Jarigbe Agom, has said he will challenge the ruling of Justice M. A. Sambo.

Justice Sambo had upheld the objection of counsel to the respondent, Mba Ukweni, SAN, and the PDP that a witness can only identify and speak on an issue contained in the deposition which he tendered.

Lead counsel of Sen Jarigbe, Mba Ukweni, SAN objected to the right of two witnesses of the petitioners who brought four of them to identify evidence P39 brought before the court.

He argued that for a witness to be able to identify or tender a document from the witness box, he or she must have mentioned or referred to it in an earlier deposition.

“It is similar to the rule of pleading, if you don’t plead any fact, you cannot lead evidence on it.

“So, if a witness does not refer to a document in his statement, he cannot also identify the document from the witness box or have it tendered, not just in election cases but also in civil matters,” he said.

But Ozekhome insisted before the Tribunal that a witness could mention matters relating to the document in his deposition if he is a polling unit agent for his party.

“Our witnesses have mentioned register, the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, (BVAS) and voters, the only thing they said they did not do was that they should have said voter register in their deposition.

“Our witnesses said they are from their polling units and can identify the document, the document was already tendered as exhibit, they were not trying to tender them but to identify them.

“A witness from a polling unit can be made to look at the register of voters or any document from that polling unit which he has identified,” he said.

Ozekhome then disclosed that they would challenge the decision in their final written address.

Ayade and APC had tendered 749 exhibits to upturn Jarigbe’s election.

Further hearing will continue on Wednesday July 26, 2023.