By Nelson Utip
Justice Adekunle Adeyeye, The Chairman of The Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal has stated that judgement will be delivered within the statutory 180 day allowed by law in the case brought before it by The APC gubernatorial candidate Timiprye Sylva, he stated this in Abuja on Monday the 22nd day of April at the proceedings of the case, promising to communicate all parties to the case on the day judgment will be delivered.
The proceedings in Monday saw the petitioners, Sylvia and APC, adopted their final written address, calling on the tribunal to annul the declaration of Diri as the winner of the election.
Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN the lead councel of the petitioners told the tribunal that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, wrongfully excluded some results before announcing Diri as the winner which according to him, INEC did not debunk. On this strength, he called on the tribunal to objectively decide the petition on the strength of the evidence adduced by the petitioners especially because INEC did not call a single witness to challenge all the allegations.
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Meanwhile, Diri’s counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, informed the tribunal that the petition by Sylvia cannot be substantiated as it is grossly deficient in quantity and quality of evidence positing that the petition was baseless, frivolous and vexatious and grossly lacking in merit because the two petitioners did not discharge the burden placed on them by law, he said that Sylva predicated his petition on alleged refusal of INEC to collate results in three local governments areas- Southern Ijaw, Nembe and Ogbia but failed to call a single collation officer to back up its claim Uche also said that Sylvia did not tender voters register, BVAS machines and form EC8A used for the purported election in the three local governments to establish his allegations, adding that the petitioner himself, despite having a witness statement on oath, refused to give evidence before the tribunal to substantiate his allegations.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria SAN concluded that the petitioner in spite of having a witness statement on oath, did not give evidence before the tribunal to substantiate his allegations.
He therefore pleaded with the tribunal to discountenance the evidence of a former Police Commissioner in the state as he admitted before that he had issues with Diri when the Prado Jeep earlier given to him was withdrawn.
He also urged the tribunal not to follow the example of the judgement that brought Imo State governor, Hope Uzodinma into office, as INEC has established beyond reasonable doubt that election did not hold in the three local governments due to resistance by some hoodlums to the use of BVAS machines.
INEC who was represented by Charles Edosomwan, SAN, and Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, represented by Tayo Oyetibo, SAN urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition on the ground that the two petitioners failed and neglected to discharge the burden of establishing their allegations against the election beyond reasonable doubt as required by law.
They said that they did not bother to call witnesses as the witnesses of petitioners killed and buried the petition while being cross examined during the proceedings.
The petitioners are urging INEC to contradict itself by declaring that Governor Diri did not score majority votes in the November 2023 gubernatorial election in Bayelsa state.
