Again, Tribunal dismisses Amosun’s bid to stop Isiaka’s petition …INEC closes case without witness
Last minutes efforts by the Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun and his party, All Progressives Congress (APC) to convince the Tribunal to strike out the petition challenging their victory at the April 11, this year election were Tuesday dismissed by the 3-man panel headed by Justice Henry Olusiyi.
Amosun and his party had once again, challenged the jurisdiction and competence of the Tribunal, thereby asking for the dismissal of the PDP’s petition on account of “irregularity, incompetence and lack of jurisdiction of the Honourable Tribunal to determine the petition as constituted”.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) today also closed its case without calling its witness.
The electoral body had listed a witness, Mr Dickson Atiba to defend sundry allegations against the credibility of the election especially allegations of over-voting, non compliance with Electoral acts and rigging in 9 local councils under contention.
But counsel to the INEC, Mr Oluwajare Ogunnaike told the Tribunal that Atiba had been transferred to Lagos and all efforts to bring him down to Abeokuta had been difficult due to his busy schedule.
Ogunnaike, on whose instance the proceeding was adjourned till today informed the court he could not get across to the witnesses in time who he said has been transferred outside the state.
Counsel to the Petitioners, Adetunji Oyeyipo (SAN) said he would only concede to the adjournment if Ogunnaike would undertake on the availability of the witness.
Oyeyipo further told the court that the body language of the 3rd respondent was not to the effect of calling any witness adding that it was either the witness was not willing or that INEC was not eager to call him urging the court to order the third respondent to close its case.
While responding to the posers by the Chairman of the panel Justice Henry Olusiyi asking if there could be any other better assignment for an INEC staff to come to court to defend the election the electoral body conducted that Ogunnaike responded, “We are not afraid to present our witness and in the absence of assurances that we can bring him to court, I hereby apply to close our case”.
But at the twilight of adjourning the case to give lawyers some days to present their final written addresses that Counsel to the first Respondent (Amosun) John Olusola Baiyeshea (SAN) and George Adeniyi of the APC filed separate applications dated August 3, this year seeking “an order setting aside the entire proceedings and report of the pre-hearing session on account of lack of jurisdiction of the Honourable Tribunal.
Chairman of the three man tribunal panel, Justice Henry Olusiyi said the applications were abuse of court processes and unnecessary waste of time of the tribunal.
The applications were brought pursuant to section 6 and section 36 (6) of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and paragraphs 18 (1) – (4), 47 (1) and 53 (5) of the first schedule to the Electoral Act, 2010 as amended.
According to the motion on notice obtained by our Correspondent, the 1st and 2nd Respondents sought for an order setting aside the entire proceedings and report of the pre-hearing session which was closed on July 13.
In the alternative, the respondents also sought the order consequentially dismissing and/or striking out the petition on account of irregularities, incompetence and/or lack of jurisdiction of the Tribunal to determine the Petition as constituted.
In the Counter affidavit, the petitioners posited that all issues raised in the application are not true and that they have been adjudicated upon by the Tribunal in separate applications by the Respondents.
The petitioner further explained that the applications were brought malafide and with a view to waste the time of the Tribunal and dissipate the constitutional time within which the petition should be heard and determined.
Ruling on the applications, Justice Olusiyi held that the applications were attempts to relitigate on matters that have been long settled by the same tribunal.
The Chairman posited that the right thing for the respondents would have been to appeal the rulings instead of seeking the tribunal to sit on appeal over rulings on which issues raised in the applications had been dealt with.
He said, “By these applications, the 1st and 2nd Respondent are asking us to sit on an appeal over our ruling of 7th of July, 2015 and 30th of July, 2015. All the two issues raised in the two applications have been decided upon one way or the other.
“The normal and proper thing for the 1st and 2nd respondents to have done was to appeal and not to bug us down with these applications. This is no doubt an abuse of court process. This applications are an attempt to relitigate matters that this Tribunal has long settled.
“It is an abuse of judicial processes and unnecessary waste of Tribunal’s precious time. The application are bereft of merit and substance. This applications failed and dismissed.”
The case has, however, been adjourned till Tuesday, 29th September, 2105 for the adoption of final written addresses by the parties.
It would be recalled that Amosun closed his case with 4 out of 29 witnesses listed while APC did not call any witness despite the fact that eleven witnesses had already been listed.