The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) suspended proceedings on Monday for lawyer to President Muhammadu Buhari to provide equipment needed to play a digital video disc (DVD)) said a clip where the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), Prof Mahmoud Yakubu ruled out the adoption of electronic transmission of results of the last general elections.
The five-member tribunal, led by Justice Mohammed Garba adjourned till Tuesday, shortly after Buhari’s lawyer, Alex Izinyon (SAN) sought to be allowed to bring equipment to play the DVD after lawyer to Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chris Uche (SAN) objected to the use of their television set and DVD player for the disc the second respondent’s lawyer sought to play.
Monday was the eighth of the 10 days allocated to Atiku and the PDP, who are, by their petition,n challenging the outcome of the last presidential election won by President Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Atiku and his party claimed, in their petition, to have won the last presidential election, going by results they got from a purported INEC server.
In all, the petitioners, who proposed to call about 400 witnesses, have so far, called 40, having called four on Monday.
After calling their third witness on Monday, Uche indicated the petitioners’ intention to tender video evidence contained in about 48 compact discs and to play some in open court.
The petitioners proceeded to call its fourth witness for the day, Segun Showunmi, through whom they tendered the CDs and a certificate of compliance. Showunmi introduced himself as the Media Adviser to Atiku.
Although lawyers to the respondents – Yunus Usman (SAN), for INEC; Izinyon, and Adeniyi Akintola (SANN), for the APC objected to the admission of the CD in evidence, the tribunal, in a ruling, overruled the respondents’ objection.
Justice Garba said the CDs were part of exhibits covered by the pre-election agreement by parties, which the tribunal adopted.
Upon the ruling, Uche applied that some of the videos be played, following which three of the CDs were played.
The first was a recording of a television programme – “Sunday Politics” – which featured an interview with an INEC official, identified as Mike Igini.
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In the video, Igini gave details about INEC’s preparation for the last general elections, stressing the planned use of card reader for accreditation and electronic transmission of election results through a central server.
The second video showed an official of the Nigerian Army, who claimed not to have neither original, photocopy or statement of the West Africa Examination Certificate (WAEC) in President Buhari’s personal file).
The third video was one showing INEC’s Chairman in a meeting with some members of the Computer Registration Council of Nigeria (CRCN), during which he among others, spoke about INEC’s plan to deploy technology, particularly the introduction of a new platform for electronic collation and transmission of results, during the elections.
Under cross-examination by Usman, Showunmi admitted being aware of other interviews granted by INEC Chairman, particularly those of February 6 and 8, 2019 where he spoke about the impossibility of transmitting results electronically.
When asked if he could produce his letter of appointment as Atiku’s media aide, the witness said he was not with the letter, but that it could be in his house in Lagos.
Showunmi said he knew Igini, and agreed with the INEC lawyer that, in the video, marked as Exhibit P74, the INEC Chairman only expressed the hope that “election results may be transmitted electronically, not that it will be transmitted electronically
The witness also agreed with Usman that the interviews, contained in the videos showing Igini and INEC Chair, were all done before the election.
Under-cross examination by Izinyon, Showunmi said he was aware of INEC Chairman’s interview of February 6, 2019 where he said electronic transmission will not be possible.
At that point, Izinyon, brought out a CD, and wanted to play it for the witness to confirm if that was the interview he said he was aware of.
Uche promptly interjected and objected to playing of the video through his witness.
Upon the intervention of the tribunal Chairman, Uche said the respondent should bring their gadgets to play their video.
Uche said: “My lord, this are our equipment,” pointing to the flat-screen television and CD player. “We brought them to play our CDs. They should bring their own.
“In digital world, there is what they call virus, that may affect our gadgets if the CD is played on it,”Uche said, following which Izinyon sought an adjournment till the next day to enable him fetch his own equipment. [THE NATION]
