Sylvester Aigbogun, a Deputy Director with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has told the Ekiti governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in the FCT High Court, Apo that the July 14 governorship election in the state was free and fair.
Aigbogun, who was the Electoral Officer for Ikole Local Government Area of the state during the election, said this on Tuesday while testifying for INEC in the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and Prof Olusola Kolapo, the party’s candidate in the election.
The PDP and the Olusola had dragged INEC, the All Progressives Congress, APC, and Gov. Kayode Fayemi, the winner of the election before the tribunal.
The petitioners are challenging the declaration of Fayemi as the winner of the election by the first respondents, INEC.
Aigbogun, while being cross-examined by Yomi Aliyu SAN, counsel for APC, stated that his assertion that the election was free and fair was based on what he saw while visiting some polling units in the local government during the election as well as what was presented to him from various units and wards.
“The election was free and fair. This was based on what I saw and what was presented to me.
“PDP and its candidate, Professir Kolapo did not make any complaint to me on the conduct of the election in my local government.”
While answering question from R O Balogun SAN, counsel for Fayemi, the witness stated that APC won in Ikole LGA without any hitches with a total of 14,522 votes as against PDP’s 13,961.
He asserted that the election was conducted substantially in line with the Electoral Act and the manual for the election issued by INEC earlier tendered and admitted as Exhibit RA9.
The witness stated that he did not see any presiding officer or other persons deliberately voiding ballot papers during his visit to some polling units in the course of the election.
According to Aigbogun, under-cross examination by the counsel for the petitioners, Adebayo Adelodun SAN, that entries on Form EC8A had to tally with those on the pink copy issued to agents of parties at polling units.
The witness added that wherever an alteration in the entries was not initialed by either the presiding officers or collation officers, there was no way he could know that such was an honest mistake.
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