The Presidential Election Petition Court commenced proceedings today with the presentation of a petition by Peter Obi and the Labour Party. The party called its fourth witness, Professor Eric Ofuegbu, a renowned Professor of Mathematics at Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka.
However, the lead lawyer for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Abubakar Mahmoud, expressed his discontent with the short notice of the witness statement. He described the Labour Party’s actions as an “ambush” and requested the Court to postpone the witness’s testimony to allow ample time for studying the statement.
On the other hand, Bola Tinubu, represented by his lawyer, Wole Olanipekun, showed no objection to the witness providing testimony. Nonetheless, Olanipekun suggested a brief adjournment to accommodate INEC’s need for 48 hours to analyze the statement of this star witness.
After considering the arguments, Chairman of the Election Petition Court, Justice Haruna Tsammani, delivered a short ruling. The Court emphasized the importance of justice and fair hearing and decided to allow the witness to present evidence on Thursday.
Cross-examination of the witness was scheduled for the following day, Friday, June 16.
