PEPC admits from Obi 18,000 PU results, evidence from mathematics Professor and Arise TV
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Peter Obi and his Labour Party (LP) have tendered at the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) blurred results from 18,088 polling units which the court admitted in evidence against the objection of Bola Tinubu and other respondents.
The results from across the country were downloaded and printed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from its view portal, IReV.
The court also admitted in evidence data analysis of the presidential election results and their accompanying appendices.
Both Obi and the LP are challenging the election of Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as declared by the INEC.
Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN presented the documents on behalf of the petitioners and announced he intended to call to the witness box Eric Ofoedu, a Professor of mathematics, to testify.
The LP engaged Ofoedu a few days before the election to analyse data from the presidential vote held on February 25.
Also admitted in evidence were the letter addressed to Ofoedu seeking his service and the subpoena served on him to appear before the court.
The respondents – the NEC, Tinubu, Vice President, Kashim Shettima, and the APC – all objected to the admissibility of the documents.
APC counsel Lateef Fagbemi, SAN objected to the admissibility of the subpoena served on Ofoedu but gave consent to the court to admit his letter of engagement.
Lawyers for all the respondents said the reasons for their objections will be advanced at the later stage of the petition.
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Court admits evidence from maths professor, Arise TV
Ofoedu, led in evidence by Ikpeazu, SAN, tendered the data analysis of the election, INEC Results Viewing scores investigation, and a separate data analysis of results in Rivers and Benue. The reports were admitted in evidence by the court, per The PUNCH.
Ofoedu was not cross-examined by the respondents as PEPC Chairman Justice Tsammani moved cross-examination to June 16 following the objections by the respondents who said they were served the witness statement a few minutes before the sitting.
The petitioners also summoned Arise Television to appear before the court, and its employee, Lumnie Edevbie, was led in evidence by counsel to the petitioners, Patrick Ikweato, SAN.
Edevbie tendered in evidence a copy of a flash drive containing a video clip of INEC Chairman Mahmoud Yakubu giving a speech at Chatham House in London on January 17.
In the speech, Yakubu pitched for the use of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the IRev as INEC’s biggest archive and repository of election results.
The respondents objected to the admissibility of the clip but the court admitted it and marked it as one of the exhibits.
The court adjourned continuation of the hearing until June 16.