…As Supreme Court Reserves Judgement
Counsel to the All Progressives Congress, APC, the third respondent in the governorship election case in Ogun State, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo, has described the document most relied upon in the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as an orphan and dubious.
Oyetibo made the remarks at the hearing of the case on Thursday at the Supreme Court in Abuja, citing Section 179 of the Constitution, adding that the position of the PDP lead counsel, Chris Uche, SAN, that the governorship election of 18th March in the state was wrongly and unlawfully concluded could not be proved by the counsel.
He further argued that the appellants have been running from the main case that they took to the tribunal, insisting that tbe substance of the case the appellants brought was that the election was inconclusive, leading to a burden on the appellants to prove, which they failed to do.
He explained that Exhibit PT609, which was the mainstay of the appellants’ case, was worthless and that the document did not contain name, title, signature, and date.
Earlier, Chief Uche adopted all briefs as his argument in the appeal, urging the court to allow the appeal and overturn the majority decision of the Court of Appeal.
He also adopted his response to the motion raised by INEC.
Meanwhile, cousel to the second respondent, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, in his submission, urged the court to dismiss the appeal, which challenged concurrent decisions of the two lower courts.
He said the appellants ought to have been consistent in presenting their case; and then made allusion to Page 5206 of the record showing that the tribunal painstakingly went through the law and evidence and concluded that the appellants had the burden to prove the margin of lead but did not do so.
Also, counsel to the first respondent, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, A J Owonikoko, SAN, identified his brief and adopted same.
Owonikoko, thereafter, prayed the court to dismiss the appeal, as the Supreme Court thereafter reserved judgment on the matter.
