[READ & SHARE] Ekiti: PDP wants APC’s petition struck out VIA @iKanzee_RR

Ado Ekiti—PEOPLES Democratic Party, PDP in
Ekiti State, has asked the Governorship
Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Ado Ekiti,
to strike out the petition by the state chapter
of the All Progressive Congress, APC,
challenging the declaration of its governorship
candidate, Ayo Fayose, as the winner of the
June 21 governor ship election in the state.
PDP, which based its argument on what it
called non-joinder and mis-joinder of parties
in the case, however said it had lined up 35
witnesses to prosecute it case.
The APC has dragged Fayose to the tribunal,
claiming among others, that Fayose ,who was
declared winner by the Independent National
Electoral Commission, INEC, did not score the
highest number of votes in the June 21
governorship election.
The PDP in its preliminary objection, deposed
to, by its lead counsel, Yusuf Ali (SAN) and
filed by the party’s legal adviser in the state,
Mr. Kolapo Kolade, urged the Tribunal to
strike out the case on the basis of non-joinder
and mis-joinder of parties in the case.
Speaking, Kolade said “The APC is claiming
that Fayose did not score the highest number
of votes and that his election should be
nullified and Governor Kayode Fayemi, who
was not joined as a petitioner be declared
winner. This is a case of non-joinder. Then,
what is the reason behind the joining of the
Chief of Defence Staff as a respondent in this
case? Because Military did not partake in the
electoral process and this is a clear case of
mis-joinder.”
According to Kolade, some of the issues raised
by the party, particularly the contention over
the Higher National Diploma, HND Certificate
paraded by Fayose, now being contested by
APC in its petition, run contrary to the
principle of estoppels.
Noting that controversy surrounding Fayose’s
HND Certificate obtained from The
Polytechnic, Ibadan, Oyo State, had been
trashed by Appeal Court, in the case of
Alliance for Democracy, AD, versus Fayose in
2003, contending that the case had been
gazetted in the Court records.
PDP equally described as mere academic
exercise, APC’s claim that the election was
rigged via what it termed ‘photo and thermo
chromic’ electronic device, saying such “is
unknown to electoral Law.”
APC had in its petition deposed to by its lead
counsel, Lateef Fagbemi, (SAN) and filed by
Akingbolu, had argued that Fayose was not
qualified to stand for the election on the
premises of his 2006 impeachment as the
governor of the State and the fact that he
allegedly paraded fake HND obtained from The
Polytechnic, Ibadan, Oyo State.
APC equally averred that the INEC allegedly
rigged the election in favour of Fayose through
electronic means.
The party is also contesting what it described
as the alleged militarisation of the election,
saying some of its members were allegedly
traumatised by security agencies during the
poll.