From Priscilla Ofunre, Ado-Ekiti
Legal counsel to the Senate Spokesman, Senator Dayo Adeyeye, Chief Rafiu Balogun, has faulted the verdict of the Ekiti State Election Petition Tribunal which declared the immediate past Senate Minority Leader, Abiodun Olujimi actual winner of the Ekiti South Senatorial District Election .
Balogun, in his official reaction to the tribunal ruling against his client maintained that the tribunal actually made case for the petitioner by conducting a recount of the votes .
The Tribunal sitting in Ado-Ekiti had, last Tuesdsy nullified the election of Adeyeye of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and declared Olujimi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the true winner of the February 23, 2019 election.
Delivering the judgement, the three -man tribunal, in a unanimous judgement read by Justice Danladi Adeck said, Olujimi polled a total of 54,894 as against Adeyeye who polled 52,243 after a recount conducted the votes
Balogun maintained that there was no order from the court for the recount to be conducted either by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) or the tribunal.
Balogun who explained that the defense team had argued against such during the proceedings wondered where the tribunal derived its powers to carry out such a sensitive task which its judgement was relied upon .
“We are not satisfy with the tribunal ruling against our client because there are a lots of loopholes in the judgement. What the tribunal relied upon was the report of collation agent of the PDP who said INEC deliberately voided their votes. He did not say he did a recount and there was no order at all for the recount to be done at the INEC office and we had argued against it and had been settled at the appeal in the case involving Kayode Fayemi and Olusola Eleka recently, that you can only do recount at the open court. Even in the case of Fayemi versus Segun Oni.
What they are saying is that INEC deliberately voided their votes .The tribunal is making case for the petitioner “
Corroborating Balogun’s position, the counsel to the APC, Barrister Kabiru Akingbolu stated that the tribunal also agreed with the defendants that what all the witnesses have said were mere hearsays and the documents referred to at the polling units were documentary hearsays.
Unfortunately, the tribunal summersaulted 360 degree to say that the personal computation done by the witness without any reference to the units’ results was valid.
