Rowdy session at tribunal as LP loses bid to commit Enugu REC to prison

Proceedings at the Enugu governorship election tribunal turned rowdy on Friday, as the Labour Party (LP) and Chijioke Edeoga, its candidate, lost their bid to commit Chukwuemeka Chukwu to prison.

Chukwu is the resident electoral commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the state.

The LP in the state had accused him of disobeying a valid order of the tribunal, which they said amounted to “contempt of court”.

LP and Edeoga alleged that Chukwu prevented them from inspecting the bimodal voter accreditation system (BVAS) machines used in conducting the March 18 election.

The petitioners had on March 29, applied for an order to enable them inspect the BVAS machines, an application that was granted on the same date.

On July 12, the petitioners, through Valerie Azinge, their counsel, drew the attention of the tribunal to the March 29 ex-parte order directing INEC to grant them access to inspect the BVAS machines.

POLITICAL PARTIES DISAGREE WITH LP

However, 14 other political parties present in court, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), insisted that INEC had complied with the order of the tribunal.

The political parties said while the order of the court was for LP and Edeoga to inspect the BVAS machines, they attempted to tamper with and operate them, when there were brought for inspection by the electoral umpire.

Azinge went on to ask the tribunal to commit the Enugu REC to prison for allegedly denying the LP an opportunity to inspect the machines.

However, the court rejected the application on grounds of fair hearing, stating that Chukwu should be served to enable him respond.

After the tribunal declined to imprison Chukwu, the LP requested that proceedings be postponed to July 18, to extend the deadline for concluding their case by two days.

The tribunal however declined the request, stating that the case would be adjourned to the next day, and that the petitioners should appear in court on Saturday and Sunday alongside their witnesses, to finalise their case.

At this point, supporters of the LP began shouting in an effort to disrupt the proceedings.

The police had to intervene to restore order.

Tribunal members thereafter returned to their desks and adjourned the case to July 15.