Edo 2012: Oshiomhole’s counsel accuses Airhiavbere witnesses of lying

By Simon Ebegbulem, Benin-City

COUNSEL to the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, yesterday, faulted the testimony of a witness of the appellant, Maj.-General Charles Airhiavbere (rtd), in the case which he instituted before the Election Petitions Tribunal challenging the victory of Governor Adams Oshiomhole in the July 14 election.

Irked by the inconsistencies in the witness’ testimony, the ACN counsel, Mr Ken Mozia, SAN, said: “you came here to tell lies to help your retired superior officer.”

The appellant, yesterday, brought in four witnesses to justify the alleged corrupt practice in the election.

The first witness, Saturday Oamhe, who said he could neither read nor write, said he “owned the booth” in his unit. He however caved in under cross-examination that he neither knew the number of registered voters in his Ward 10, Units 4,5 and 6, nor the names of the PDP agents in the units, despite insisting that he was his (PDP) party’s “supervisor in the Unit”.

Another witness, Best Okosisi, under cross examination, said he voted at 12:30am. He alleged that security agents at his polling unit prevented PDP supporters from voting, to which the ACN counsel countered, saying the voters had no tags to show which party they would vote for.
The attempt by the appellant’s counsel to bring in portions of the voter’s register in exhibit was resisted by the counsel of the respondents.

Chief Niyi Akintola, SAN, counsel to  Oshiomhole (1st respondent), while kicking against the document, said it was not pleaded in the witness’ statements and should therefore not be admitted as exhibit.

On his part,  Mozia said the document is a unit result and parts of the voter register and is of doubtful origin and therefore inadmissible in court.