INEC Is Scared To Present A Witness In Court – Peter Obi Lawyer Reveals

The lead counsel for Peter Obi, the Labour Party Presidential candidate in the 2023 presidential election, at the Presidential Election Petition Court Mr Levi Uzoukwu (SAN) has stated that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is not ready to defend the February 25, 2023 presidential election it conducted. According information from our reliable source, Sahara Reporters had reported that the electoral umpire had declared Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the election.

Tinubu has since been sworn in as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. According to INEC declaration, Tinubu of the APC polled 8,794,726 votes to defeat fellow contenders Atiku Abubakar of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who polled 6,984,520 votes emerging second position and Labour Party Presidential candidate Peter Obi, who had 6,101,533 votes to score third position while the candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) Rabiu Kwankwaso had 1,496,687 votes to score fourth position in the 2023 presidential election.

Both the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar are challenging the outcome of the presidential election and the results as declared by INEC before the election petition court. It was earlier reported on Monday that the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja adjourned the hearing in the petition filed by Labour Party’s Peter Obi till Tuesday, July 4, 2023. The adjustment followed the INEC’s inability to open its defence following the absence of its first witness scheduled to give testimony on Monday.

The electoral body through its lawyer Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN) had told the court that he would rely on the testimonies of three witnesses but that its first witness scheduled to be in court did not show up due to family issues. The hearing was moved to 9 am on Tuesday following Mahmoud’s application for an adjournment to enable the first witness to appear in court. Although counsels for the other parties did not object to the adjournment.

However, Peter Obi’s lead counsel said that INEC has nothing to prove. Addressing journalists shortly after the court session, Mr Levi Uzoukwu (SAN) said he had prepared so well that his team were ready to embark on a “demolition work”. He, however, added that INEC unfortunately wasn’t prepared to defend its case.

According to his words; “On our part, we prepared so well that we are ready to embark on demolition work but that is their case, they came to court and said that they proposed to have three witnesses, the first one is unavailable due to domestic reasons. We are not told what happened to the other two, therefore, they are asking adjournment till tomorrow. We are ready to come here tomorrow but I have a doubt that given the contradictions and inconsistencies; and what INEC has done, I am sure that they are not ready to defend this case.

“I stand to be proved wrong but I would wish that they defend this matter so that the public will come to see more things and what really happened during this election. Honestly speaking, I must say that we have never had an election like this last one. I stand to be contradicted but it is their choice to call a witness or not to call a witness. For us, we are ready,” Mr Levi Uzoukwu (SAN) Peter Obi lead counsel stated.