The National Assembly Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Uyo was shocked over the weekend to hear the messy details of how the Akwa Ibom State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Mike Igini, allegedly manipulated election in favour of Chris Ekpenyong, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
A witness, Dr. Alloysius Williams, called by the PDP, informed the Tribunal that Mr. Igini instructed him to cancel votes that had already been collated for the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Godswill Akpabio.
Senator Akpabio is challenging Ekpenyong’s declaration by INEC as the winner of the Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District election, at the National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Uyo, capital city of Akwa Ibom State.
Both Sen. Akpabio and Ekpenyong had presented their witnesses and closed their cases.
At the resumed hearing of the petition on Saturday for the PDP to open its case, Dr. William, a lecturer in the University of Uyo, told the tribunal that results already collated at the Local Government and Senatorial District offices of INEC and which showed that Senator Akpabio had won convincingly were later cancelled on the orders of the REC in his office in Uyo.
Dr. William made these startling revelations during cross-examination by Mr. S. I. Ameh, the lead Counsel to Senator Akpabio.
The PDP witness told the tribunal that as the Returning Officer for Essien Udim, Akpabio’s home Local Government Area, he personally prepared the result sheet, which he entered the score for the candidate of the APC as 61,329 votes, while the PDP candidate scored 9,050 votes.
He also admitted that adjustments were made in the final result. “I agree that adjustments were done. These adjustments reflected in the final scores. The adjustments were done outside Essien Udim LGA. They were done at INEC office in Uyo,” he said.
When asked to confirm the earlier testimony of a witness of Ekpenyong, the PDP candidate, Mr. Anny Asikpo, that he (the Returning Officer) had at some point disappeared from the Collation centre, a dazed Dr. William said: “I did not absconded (sic.)”
Another Witness, a Corps member, Mr. Endurance Zachary, who was the Presiding Officer during the elections, had claimed that the elections were marred by violence and he was coerced to make entries, which gave the APC victory.
However, on cross examination, Zachary admitted that he did not make any report to anyone about his claim that materials were hijacked by thugs.
He also admitted that he was forced to write his name and append his signature to the document but was stunned when Mr. Ameh, Counsel to Senator Akpabio, showed him documents he claimed he was coerced to write his name and he wrote his three names: Ikhuenbor Endurance Zachary whereas in his witness depositions that was not forced to write, he used two names only: Endurance Zachary.
Two other Corps members who served as Presiding Officers, Mr. Adebitimi Abraham and Ms Oni Hallelujah Grace, could neither present their Identity cards as Corps members nor any letter of engagement by INEC. Ms Oni claimed that she did not swear to any oath of neutrality before being deployed by INEC to conduct the elections.
The case was subsequently adjourned to Tuesday, July 23, for presentation of more witnesses by the PDP and INEC.
