Witness to tribunal: Thugs made INEC officials cancel elections in parts of A’Ibom

Emmanuel Enoidem, national legal adviser of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), says elections were cancelled in some polling units and wards in Etim Ekpo council of Akwa Ibom state because “armed thugs hijacked electoral materials”.

The PDP official said this while testifying as the first witness of Udom Emmanuel, governor of Akwa Ibom, who opened his case at the governorship election tribunal sitting in Uyo.

Enoidem, who was PDP’s state collation agent for the presidential and national assembly elections, as well as the March 9, 2019, governorship and state house of assembly elections, alleged that thugs were brought from Edo state to rig the polls.

According to him, they were, however, arrested by the police and they confessed to being paid to cause instability in PDP strongholds in the state.

Under cross-examination by Ernest Ojukwu (SAN), he admitted that he voted in his local government and that elections in units of three wards were cancelled due to activities of thugs.

Ojukwu lamented that hijacked materials and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were taken to the house of Godswill Akpabio, a former governor o the state, in Essien Udim for rigging, leading to cancellations by INEC.

Led in evidence by Assam Assam (SAN), Enoidem tendered all unit results (Form EC8A) and local government results (Form EC8B), Form EC8C, Form EC8D and Form EC8E including the certified true copies of receipt of payment to INEC in application for the forms tendered.

Under cross-examination by Uko Udom (SAN) who appeared for the second respondent, PDP, the witness affirmed his evidence in chief, stating his role as PDP’s state collation agent.

Responding to questions from the third respondent, INEC counsel, Sylva Ogwemoh (SAN), Enoidem affirmed that he was at the commission’s office and participated in collation of results from all the local government areas of the state.

He said he participated in the collation exercise with over 50 agents of other political parties.

A. M. Yakubu, the tribunal panel chairman, upheld Assam’s argument and ruled that the witness could not be cross-examined on documents he neither made nor tendered.

The court room however experienced a mixture of excitement and disquiet when Ojukwu, SAN attempted to force the witness to respond to questions on documents he neither made nor tendered.

Efforts made by Ojukwu, SAN to cross examine the witness on voter registers met the stiff opposition of Assam who objected to such questions being put to the witness.

Yakubu upheld the argument of Assam and held that, “the witness could not be cross examined on documents neither made nor tendered by him”.