Voters' Register Result Sheets Contradict Claims Of Kwara PDP Witnesses
The entire Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) witnesses at the Kwara State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal last Thursday, sought to change their witness statement on oath, as they were confronted with documentary evidence proving their statement wrong.
The Independent National Electoral Commission's (INEC) voters' register and Form EC8B (the result sheet for ward) used in cross-examining them further contradicted the claims they (PDP witnesses) made in their respective statements on oath.
At least nine PDP witnesses had in the last three days made claims that were found to be at variance with documentary evidences in either Forms EC8A (result sheet for polling units), EC8B (result sheet for ward level), or the voters' register. A host of others had also disowned parts of their depositions to the chagrin of lawyers and spectators in the court.
On Thursday, Mohammed Dokwa, the 24th witness for PDP's Governor Abdulfattah Ahmed and his deputy, Peter Kishra, claimed in his statement that the election was free and fair, and followed due process, and that all the agents, including himself, signed the result because there was no reason not to do so.
Dokwa claimed he was the PDP ward supervisor/collation agent for Lade Ward 2 of Pategi Local Government during the April 26 governorship poll, but counsel to ACN, Peter Olorunishola (SAN), produced Form EC8B for the same ward, which showed that neither Dokwa nor any other party's agents signed the result for Lade Ward 2.
Dokwa later admitted that his claim was "indeed risky" and flew in the face of documentary evidence shown on INEC documents.
Witness 22nd for the respondent, Laaro Balkis Kike, confirmed making and signing her statement on oath in which she claimed that election was properly conducted and that there were no incidents of multiple thumb-printing or any other irregularities at Ejidongari Ward.
Kike, a dark-complexioned lady in her late twenties, claimed she has never attended any school before, gave conflicting signatures when asked to sign on paper.
However, when Olorunishola confronted her with the voter's register, it confirmed that she was a student when she registered to vote in 2010, contrary to her earlier claim that she had never been to any school before.
Mohammed Saliu, the 23rd witness for the respondents, claimed in various parts of his deposition to have worked in Lafiagi Ward 1 and Ward 2, but he later sought to change his evidence in chief when he told the tribunal that he never worked in Ward 1.
Saliu, who claimed not to understand English at all, later confessed to have Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) degree in Mathematics.
He also sought to change the Paragraph 6 of his deposition in which he claimed that "ACN agents voluntarily refused to sign in areas where they did not win," an attempt to ward-off the embarrassment of such claims contradicting INEC Form EC8A, as it has been the case in the past three days when Ahmed and Kishra opened their defence against ACN's governorship candidate Mohammed Dele Belgore (SAN).
Osun Defender