Edo Tribunal: Lawyers seek adjournment over delayed witness list service

The Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal (EPT) on Monday adjourned hearing in the petition filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Asue Ighodalo, against the conduct of the September 21, 2024, election to tomorrow (Tuesday) following a delay in the service of the petitioners’ list of witness schedule on the respondents.

The Guardian reports that when the petition was called yesterday, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Governor Monday Okpebholo, and the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kanu Agabi, SAN, Onyeachi Ikpeazu, SAN, and Emmanuel Ukala, SAN, through oral applications, objected to the petitioners’ quest to field witnesses in the proceeding.

The trio counsel told the court that counsel to the petitioners had only served them the witness schedule list a few minutes before the commencement of proceedings, claiming that the development denied them adequate time to prepare for the cross-examination of the proposed witnesses.

“In view of the Tribunal’s directives on Saturday and the agreement reached by parties in the petition that the list of witness schedules should be exchanged by parties at least a day before witnesses are called for each day:

“We expected that the schedule would be served on us yesterday (Sunday) through electronic or other means, but counsel to the petitioners failed to do so.

“We did not see any list until about 9:50 a.m. before the resumption of hearing this morning. Our understanding of the Tribunal’s earlier directives and the consensus reached by parties in the suit was to assist Your Lordship, ensuring no party is taken by surprise.

“This purpose is clearly defeated when a list of witnesses is served on a party a few minutes before the commencement of hearing.

“In that circumstance, it is our humble submission that the petitioners, by their own choice, rendered today’s proceedings impossible. In these circumstances, we wish to state that we will be ready to come back tomorrow,” Ukala submitted.

Aligning himself completely with Ukala’s submission, counsel to INEC, Agabi, stated: “We are in the same predicament, my Lord.

“Our duty here is to assist Your Lordship to reach a fair decision, which we cannot do under these circumstances.”

Counsel to the 2nd respondent, Ikpeazu, also adopted the positions of Ukala and Agabi.

For the petitioners’ counsel, Adetunji Oyeyipo, SAN, the decision to serve the respondents’ counsel with the list of witness schedules on Monday morning was due to an alleged threat to their witnesses by the state APC Chairman.

“My Lord, we did not deliberately delay the circulation of these witnesses we intend to call today. It was because of the situation we found ourselves in up to yesterday (Sunday) evening.

“My Lord, the 3rd respondent state chairman made a broadcast on television, and we have a tape of it where he threatened to apprehend our witnesses and supporters of the PDP in the court premises.

“He specifically said that they (our witnesses) would be arrested today in court and dared them to show up. We sent this video to counsel for the 3rd respondent, but we did not receive any assurance of safety or security from them.

“We urge the Tribunal to refuse their applications for adjournment and allow us to proceed with our witnesses. After all, they are just eight in number,” Oyeyipo stated.

In his ruling, the Chairman of the Tribunal, Justice Wilfred Kpochi, upheld the arguments of the respondents’ counsel and adjourned the sitting to Tuesday, January 21, 2025, for the continuation of the hearing, adding that the respondents’ counsel needed time to prepare for the petitioners’ witnesses.