On Wednesday, the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal announced its decision to reject 10 out of the 13 witnesses presented by Peter Obi, the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party. Apexnewsgh.com reported
Justice Haruna Tsammani, who presided over the case, delivered this judgment on the substantive petition filed by Obi and the LP.
He highlighted that out of the 13 witnesses called by Obi, only three had filed their statements on oath along with the petition. The remaining 10 witnesses had been subpoenaed and their statements on oath were submitted after the hearing had already commenced.
According to Tsammani, it is required by law that every witness statement on oath must be submitted together with the petition, as stated in section 285 of the Nigerian constitution and section 137(7) of the Electoral Act 2022, among others. He cited the authority of the Supreme Court, which states that once the 21-day deadline for filing an election petition has passed, the content of the petition cannot be amended.
The Justice added that no further statements on oath can be filed after the specified deadline, as this would not give the respondents an opportunity to respond.
Tsammani noted that the petitioners were aware of the legal requirement regarding the submission of witness statements on oath, yet they proceeded to present 10 witnesses without including their previously filed witness statements on oath with the petition.
More to come soon…
Source: Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana
For publication please kindly contact us on 0256336062 or Email apexnewsgh@gmail.com
