Edo Gov Dispute: INEC tenders Obaseki’s nomination form in evidence
….as court dismisses PDP’s suit against Ize-Iyamu
By Ikechukwu Nnochiri, Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Tuesday, tendered in evidence before the Federal High Court in Abuja, the nomination form Governor Godwin Obaseki filled and submitted for the purpose of the governorship election that held in Edo State on September 19.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed admitted and marked the document known as Form EC9, along with other attachments that accompanied it, as Exhibit PL-2.
He dismissed objection the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, raised to query the admissibility of the document which INEC was summoned to produce before the court in the forgery case the All Progressives Congress, APC, instituted against Obaseki.
The APC had in the suit it jointly filed with one of its members in Edo, Mr Williams Edobor, alleged that Obaseki forged the University of Ibadan degree certificate he submitted to INEC in aid of his qualification for the election.
In the suit marked FHC/B/CS/74/2020, the Plaintiffs equally alleged that there were discrepancies in the subjects that Obaseki claimed he passed in his West African Examination Council (WAEC) exam and subjects in his testimonial.
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Consequently, they are praying the court to declare that Obaseki’s claim in his INEC form EC9 at column C, sworn to on June 29, 2020, at the Federal Capital Territory High Court Registry to the effect that he obtained from the University of Ibadan in 1979, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Classical Studies is false and contrary to Section 31 (5) and (6) of the Electoral Act, 2010.
Six bandits killed in gun duel in KatsinaHe equally denied that the document was downloaded from a website.
In his ruling, Justice Mohammed noted that though the PW-2 was not supposed to be sworn on oath, he held that the document sought to be tendered was “very relevant and should not be rejected on the ground that there was an error in the manner it was produced by the witness”.
Justice Mohammed held that since a substantial part of the suit centred on the Form EC9, it made the document very relevant.
“In fact, without the Form EC9, this case will collapse like a pack of cards”, the Judge held, adding that the Defendants were at liberty to cross-examine the witness.
While under cross-examination, the PW-2, told the court that in line with COVID-19 protocols, the Form EC9 was published online for candidates to download, fill and upload on INEC’s website.
Asked if the copy he tendered before the court was downloaded from the website, the witness said: “This is a copy from the file that we have it in our custody. It is also part of what the 2nd Defendant filled and submitted online”.
Meantime, in a separate judgement, Justice Mohammed, dismissed the suit PDP filed to disqualify APC’s candidate, Pastor Osaze Ize-Iyamu, from participating in the Edo State governorship election.
The court held that the suit had turned to an academic exercise since the crux of the action was to stop Ize-Iyamu from participating in the election that had since been held and won by the PDP and its candidate, Obaseki.
PDP had in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/ CS/69/20, contended that Ize-Iyamu was not a product of a valid primary election.
It told the court that the indirect primary election that produced Ize-Iyamu was conducted by the Adams Oshiomhole- led executives of the APC, at a time they were already sacked by a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, with the decision affirmed by the Court of Appeal.
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