Jegede stood his ground and blamed the INEC for deliberate refusal to supply his client with the electoral documents.
By Jeffrey Agbo
The Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja on Tuesday abruptly adjourned the petition of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar against the election of President Bola Tinubu due to alleged refusal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to make some critical electoral documents available to him.
The court shifted further hearing in the petition till June 7 pending the time the electoral body is expected to have responded to the request of Atiku and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for access to documents.
At Tuesday’s proceedings, Eyitayo Jegede, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria who conducted proceedings for Atiku sought to tender forms EC8A from 10 out of 21 Local Government Areas of Kogi State to establish the petition against Tinubu.
The exhibits mainly documents used for the February 25 Presidential Election are those from Ankpa, Dekina, Idah, Ofu, Olamaboro, Yagba East, Yagba West, Kabba-Bunu, Igalamela Odolu and Kogi.
Although, the schedule of documents to the effect was filed along with the exhibits, the court however noted that tendering such sensitive exhibits in piece meals would not be of any help especially in the areas of marking and numbering them.
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Jegede, who rose to the questions put to him by the court stood his ground and blamed the INEC for deliberate refusal to supply his client with the electoral documents.
The senior lawyer, who hinted the court that Atiku had paid as much as N6 million for the release of certified true copies of the exhibits, said the electoral body had not been forthcoming and cooperating as required and envisaged.
Jegede explained that to save the situation, the legal team of the former Vice President had to subpoena top officials of INEC to compel them to bring the required documents before the court on their own.
However in the end, the senior lawyer sought for a 24-hour adjournment to enable him approach the electoral body to do the needful.
Following no objections from counsels to the respondents — INEC represented by Abubakar Mahmud, Tinubu represented by Wole Olanipekun, and the All Progressives Congress with Lateef Fagbemi as lead counsel — Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani adjourned the matter till June 7.