A’Ibom tribunal: PDP agents admit signing multiple result sheets – Punch newspaper

PDP agent, Mr. Emmanuel Mbong admitted before the court he violated the electoral law

By Ade Adesomoju 
 

Some members of the Peoples Democratic Party, who served as the party’s agents during the April 11, 2015 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State, admitted signing multiple result sheets while testifying before the state Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, sitting in Abuja on Monday.

Meanwhile, one of the agents, Nicholas Andy, who served as the PDP agent in Ibiono-Ibom Local Government Area, admitted that no agent of any political party, including that of the PDP, signed the result sheets in three of the 11 wards of the local government.

The agents were testifying for Governor Udo‎m Emmanuel of the PDP, whose election as governor is being challenged before the tribunal by the All Progressives Congress and its candidate in the poll, Umana Umana.

Andy, while testifying on Monday denied the petitioners’ allegation that election only took place in two out of the 161 polling units in Ibiono-Ibom Local Government Area.

He admitted serving as the PDP agent for the local government and for Ikot Ikpo Ward 6 during the election.

When the petitioners’ lawyer, Mr. Dayo Akinlaja (SAN), asked him what the distance between the local government and ward collation centre was, he said he could not tell the distance in kilometres “but it is not far”.

He said PDP had agents in all the wards in the local government.

But when the petitioners’ lawyer confronted him with the list of the agents for the wards in the local government, he admitted them as being the list of approved agents but his name was not on the list.

He also confirmed, when confronted with the result sheets, that no political agent, including that of the PDP, signed the result sheets of three out of the 11 wards in the local government.

Also, one of the PDP’s agents, Emmanuel Mbong, during the Monday’s proceedings admitted signing the result sheet on behalf of the PDP ‎at Eket Urban Ward 1 and Eket Urban Ward 3 as well as for Eket Local Government Area.

Mbong said though he was the agent approved by the Independent National Electoral Commission for PDP in Eket Local Government Area and Eket Urban Ward 1, he had to sign for the PDP in Eket Urban Ward 3, because ‎the agent approved for that ward needed to rush his wife to the hospital.

“The agent for Ward 3, Chief Ekpe Udoh, called me on the telephone and when I was at the Local Government Collation Centre that he was indisposed because his wife was stooling‎, and throwing up; so he had to rush her to the hospital,” Mbong said.

Also testifying, Obong Titus, who said collation of results took place in all the polling units and wards and Etinan Local Government, confirmed that the PDP had agents in all the 11 wards in the local government.

He confirmed that the result sheets of Wards 1, 5 and 8 of Etinan LGA marked as Exibit DDD 1, 5 and 8 were signed by Prince Ibanga Udofia, when the petitioners’ counsel confronted him with documents.

Emmanuel, represented by Mr. Paul Usoro (SAN), has so far called 19 witnesses. The proceedings continue on Tuesday.

Culled from Punch newspaper