Ogun Election Tribunal Accepts PDP Candidate’s 8,000 Documents as Evidence

In a significant development at the Ogun State Election Petition Tribunal, over 8,000 documents presented by Ladi Adebutu, the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, have been admitted. The tribunal officially accepted the exhibits during its resumed proceedings on Thursday.

The admission of these documents follows Adebutu’s submission to the court on Tuesday, wherein he requested their acceptance from the bar. However, the respondents, comprising opposing parties in the case, sought permission to inspect the documents before their admission.

In response to the request, the tribunal granted both the petitioners and respondents a timeframe spanning Tuesday and Wednesday to scrutinize the undisputed documents and subsequently re-present them on Thursday.

During the Thursday session, Gordy Uche, counsel to the petitioners, informed the tribunal that the respondents had diligently inspected the documents, as previously ordered. The counsel representing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Remi Olatubora, confirmed the authenticity of the documents, stating that they were in line with the commission’s records.

Titilola Akinlawon, counsel to Governor Dapo Abiodun, one of the respondents, affirmed that the documents had been meticulously inspected. However, she specified that the objection to the admissibility of the documents would be reserved until the final addresses were made. Onyechi Ikpeazu, the lawyer representing the All Progressives Congress (APC), also echoed a similar sentiment, expressing that the party’s objections to certain documents would be raised during the final addresses.

In a decisive ruling, the tribunal, led by Hamidu Kunaza, admitted all the exhibits presented from the bar. The tribunal’s ruling stipulated that “all documents are to be admitted from the bar, and objections reserved till final addresses.”

Among the vast array of documents admitted by the tribunal are a comprehensive 176-page BVAS report, a certificate of compliance, an INEC receipt, Form EC8A, which signifies the declaration of results from INEC, Form EC8D, summarizing the results from local governments, Form EC8Cs for all 20 local government areas, and Form EC8Bs for Abeokuta North, Abeokuta South, Ado-Odo/Ota, Egbado North, Egbado South, Ewekoro, Ifo, Ijebu North, Ijebu-Ode, Ikenne, Remo North, Odogbolu, Sagamu, and several others.

The admission of these crucial documents sets the stage for further proceedings at the Ogun State Election Petition Tribunal. As the case unfolds, stakeholders and observers eagerly await the final addresses where objections to the admissibility of certain documents will be addressed.