AWKA—A WITNESS, Mr. Emmanuel Onyeka has told the Justice G.M Nabarum panel sitting in Awka that the recording in the result sheets from his Ezi Anam Ward of Anambra West Local Government Area had become faint that they were no longer legible. He said they had stayed for long and were no longer clear. APGA candidate, Mr. Peter Obi had also in his evidence last year made the same observation. Onyeka a 140th witness for Ngige said he monitored the April 19 governorship election for his party, PDP, in his ward, claimed that election was held in his area. Onyeka who testified for Governor Chris Ngige was led in evidence by Mr. Emeka Ngige (SAN). Onyeka also claimed that he was at the INEC Local Government Headquarters at Nzam when other wards returned their result
.Ngige: Did you see your Local Government agent?
Onyeka: Yes, I met my Local Government agent by name Raphael Chigbata. I met him there with my ward agent.
Ngige: After meeting him, what did you do with him?
Onyeka: The PDP ward agent from Ezi Anam called him and handed over the result he signed in Ezi Anam ward.
Ngige: From there, what did you people do, did you do any other thing?
Onyeka: I did not do any other thing.
Ngige: Can we have your voter’s card and your monitoring card.? Onyeka (tenders them).
Ngige: Hon Onyeka, the petitioner is alleging that there was no election in your ward, what is your reaction?
Onyeka: My lord, there was election
Ngige: The petitioner also said that the name of your ward is Umukwuna Umudior ward, is that correct?
Onyeka: My lord, it is not true, the name of my ward is Ezi Anam. INEC lawyer, Chief O.B. Onyali: Took over to cross-examine the witness.
Onyali: Honourable, in the course of your monitoring from booth to booth and also at the distribution, did you know if other political parties had their agents doing similar job.
Onyeka: I know some of their members who were at the Local Government but I don’t know if they were the agents.
Onyali: Let us come down to the booth where you voted, do you know whether your parties had agents there?
Onyeka: Yes.
Onyali: What of other political parties?
Onyeka: I don’t know, my lord.
Onyali: In that booth where you voted, do you know the political party that won.
Onyeka: PDP won.
Onyali: Before the end of the voting that day, did you see the supervisory presiding officer any where?
Onyeka: Yes, I saw him at the middle of the voting precisely, I saw him at Umuonyenta polling booth where he was giving result sheet. I met him at another place, at Umuonne where he was given the result
.Onyali: Did you sight the original copies of the result in the booth.
Onyeka: Yes.
Onyali: You said your ward party agent was also with you when ward agents handed over the result to their local party agents, were the results submitted the original or duplicate?
Onyaka: The ward agent Eze Okafor handed over the result duplicate to Mr. Raphael Chigbata, PDP agent.
Onyali: You said this was in your presence?
Onyeka: Yes, I was there Onyali: This your ward agent, do you know where he is and what his job is?
Onyeka: He is a Barber at Awka Road, at Onitsha.
Onyali: You said you voted, could you tell the tribunal how you voted Onyeka (Narrates how he queued, went through the voting processes and voted)
Onyali: Look at Exhibit AC4 (iv), that is result for code 004, was the result of where you voted?
Onyeka: Yes, my lord.
Onyali: Could you read out the score?
Onyeka: PDP has 50 votes
Onyali: Could you assess the popularity of PDP in your area?
Onyeka: PDP is very popular in my ward, if you look at the result sheet, you can see the number of people that registered.
Dr Onyechi Ikepazu (SAN) for the petitioner, at this juncture took over the cross-examination.
Ikpeazu: What was the colour of the result sheet handed over to the collation officer at your ward?
Onyeka: It was redish Ikpeazu: Exhibit AC 4 (i - xx) are they the result handed over to the collation officer?
Onyeka: Yes.
Ikpeazu: Please, look at Ac4 (xiii), read the code number of the result?
Onyeka: It is now faint, I can’t read it.
Ikpeazu: On the same exhibit, please read the number of voters on the register?
Onyeka: It is not legible now, but it was before. Ikpeazu: Please, read the number of ballot paper recorded in the same exhibit?
Onyeka: I can’t see very clearly
Ikpeazu: Please, take a look at exhibit AC4 (xiv), read the name of the presiding officer?
Onyeka: It looks like Madukasi, somebody.
Ikpeazu: Why can’t you see it?
Onyeka: Because these papers have gone through many hands, may be it is wiping away, that has been a long time, over one year.
Ikpeazu: Please read the, PDP score on the same result.
Onyeka: PDP has 47
Ikpeazu: The polling booths you monitored in your evidence-in-chief were known to you before the election?.
Onyeka: Yes.
Ikpeazu: You had contested election in that area before?
Onyeka: Yes
Ikpeazu: On 3/5/03 you contested election where the booths served as polling booths...
Onyeka: Yes.
Ikpeazu: Did you also monitor your own election for PDP?
Onyeka: Yes
Ikpeazu: Does your ward has a ward chairman?
Onyeka: Yes.
Ikpeazu: Please, show him exhibit ME, 1 put it to you that your party invented the labelling, monitoring agent for the purpose of this evidence, it never existed.
Onyeka: It is not true.
Ikpeazu: Look at exhibit ME, can you read the ward monitoring, can you see monitoring in the printed items?
Onyeka: No, it is written in biro.
Ikpeazu: And you confirmed that you used it for three elections?
Onyeka: Yes, I used it.
Ikpeazu: Umuikwu is in Ezi Anam?
Onyeka: Yes
Ikpeazu: It is the largest in Ezi Anam?
Onyeka: Umuikwu and Umudiora are the largest Ikpeazu: Please show him exhibit AC4 series, are they the carbon or original copies?
Onyeka: They are not the original copies.
Ikpeazu: I put it to you that there was no election and your evidence is as fabricated as the AC 4 (i -xx) series?
Onyeka: It is not true... there was election at Ezi Anam, free and fair.
Ikpeazu: Were you present when your agent at the ward polling station signed the result?
Onyeka: I was not present when he signed. Hearing in the petition continues tomorrow.
