By D-VOA
Additional witnesses appearing for Mr Godwin Obaseki at the Edo elections petitions tribunal sitting in Benin City have admitted that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC failed to train them with its elections manual or the the Voters register prior to the 2016 Edo governorship elections.
The seven witnesses who appeared at press time for Obaseki gave testimonies which contradicted their written depositions when they were being cross-examined by counsels to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP., namely Roland Otaru, SAN and Ferdinand Orbih, SAN.
The witnesses were among those called by Obaseki in his defense as the second respondent in the petition filed by the PDP and its candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu who are challenging the victory the APC and Obaseki were granted by INEC in the elections.
Mr Emmanuel Macaulay a polling agent for the APC for Unit 15 Ward five in Akoko-Edo local government area had earlier told the court that accreditation and voting took place simultaneously in the unit where he voted
Under cross examination by Orbih, SAN he however said that he did not understand what the ticking on the left and right of the voter's photograph on the Voters Register by an INEC official on Election Day, which meant accreditation to vote and voted represents.
He admitted that whereas there was some ticking to the left of the photographs to show accreditation of voters to vote there was no ticking on the right to show that they had voted adding that this is because INEC did not train him on the election manual and the Voters register.
Sheikiri Clifford who who was a polling agent for the APC in unit two Ward 10 of the local government area also told the tribunal that he was present along with the PDP agent from when accreditation commenced till the votes were counted and entered into the result sheets on Election Day.
However under cross examination, when he was presented with the copy of the INEC result sheet for the polling unit which he claimed he signed along with the PDP agent on Election Day, he could not locate the name or signature of the PDP agent.
Another witness Mrs Justina Joseph another polling agent from Akoko-Edo local government also displayed ignorance about the use of the INEC voters register after she told the court that, "without accreditation voting cannot be done", while under cross examination by the PDP counsel, Roland Otaru, SAN.
She said she was the first person on the queue accredited to vote on Election Day but given the the copy of the Voters register used in her polling unit on the date, she confirmed to the court that there was no ticking either on the left or on the right of the voters photograph.
