Onyinye Anumonye counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the ongoing last September 28, 2016 governorship election petition tribunal sitting in Benin-City on Thursday attributed wrong accreditation of voters during the election to the commission’s ad-hoc staff.
Anumonye made the disclosure while cross examining one Alonge Mathew, an All Progressives Congress (APC) party agent to Governor Godwin Obaseki during the election.
During the cross examination of the witness, Anumonye asked that some of the electoral officers who are members of the Nigeria Youth Service Corp (NYSC) accredited voters twice by ticking on their names at both left and right sides of the voters’ register instead of once.
“Is it not true that some of the electoral officers who are NYSC members marked the voters’ register twice during accreditation instead of once? As a human being you can also mistakes”, queried.
Mathew on cross examination by APC counsel, Kayode Olatoke (SAN), affirmed that there was ticking to the left and right hand sides of the voters’ register during accreditation by INEC officials.
He however added when cross examined by PDP counsel, Emmanuel Ukala (SAN) that he was not in a position to know whether INEC staff made mistake in the accreditation process or not.
But at the resumed hearing yesterday, Anthony Okoro another agent to Governor Godwin Obaseki, also in response to INEC counsel cross examination stated that he doesn’t know whether the NYSC members were not permanent staff of INEC.
He told the court that he was only accredited once. He however stated that when cross examined by PDP counsel that the voter register of his polling unit was ticked on both left and right hand sides signifying accreditation of voters.
Another witness, Nosa Ikponwonsa Joseph also attributed non- ticking of his name at the voters’ register during the election to INEC.
Joseph who was agent to Governor Godwin Obaseki during the election was made to sign the same signature signed at his deposition statement by PDP counsel, Roland Otaru.
The signed signature was admitted in evidence and marked exhibit by the tribunal.
Osaretin Enaruna, an APC agent from Ovia North-West local government area also told the tribunal that INEC officials’ accredited voter’s by only ticking to the right hand side.
His APC party agent card where he admittedly wrote his name and signed by himself was admitted in evidence and marked exhibit by the tribunal.
