Edo Poll: Tribunal directs Secretary to produce results of re-counted ballot papers

Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Benin, weekend, directed the Secretary to the tribunal to make available to it today, results of the re-counted ballot papers in some of the four local governments earlier ordered by it.

The order was sequel to the application made by lead counsel to the tribunal, Mallam Yusuf Alli, SAN, that the tribunal should direct the Secretary to make available, results of the re-counted ballot papers in the local government areas that have been counted.

This was opposed by counsel to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondents, Mr Onyiyen Alomunye, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC; Ken Mozia, SAN, Godwin Obaseki and Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, for All Progressives Congress, APC, who had insisted that the petitioners had exhausted the 14 days allotted to them to prove their case.

Alomunye, counsel to INEC, said that the petitioner’s application calling on the tribunal to direct the Secretary to make available the recounted results will serve no useful purpose as it has no legal foundation and urged the tribunal to reject the application.

In his ruling, chairman of the three-man tribunal, Justice Ahmed Badamasi, said that the re-counting of the ballot papers was done within the time allotted to the petitioners as directed by it.

He, therefore, directed the Secretary to furnish the tribunal with the outcome of the recounting exercise on or before Monday and make same available to counsel to the petitioners and respondents.