The governorship election petition tribunal in Abeokuta, Ogun State, halted proceedings prematurely yesterday due to the failure of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to present more witnesses as planned.
PDP’s counsel, Chief Chris Uche, was only able to call upon a single witness – Ayinde Ridwan Olamilekan from Abeokuta, as the remaining two witnesses from Odogbolu failed to appear.
Uche explained to the tribunal that the witnesses’ transportation suffered a breakdown en route, hindering their attendance at the proceedings. He requested an adjournment until the following day, which the tribunal granted.
Additionally, given the poor attendance of scheduled witnesses, PDP, via its counsel, shifted the date set to conclude its case from Friday to the next day.
Uche also shared with the Tribunal that he had recently filed the Witness Statement of expert witness Chief Reginald Udunze, as well as the expert’s report. He mentioned that he planned to allow APC and Governor Abiodun’s lawyers time to review these newly served documents.
During the brief proceedings, the only witness who testified in favor of the PDP, Ayinde Ridwan Olamilekan, was cross-examined by Governor Abiodun’s counsel, Bode Olanipekun.
When cross-examined, Ridwan admitted he could not recall the date he signed his statement for the tribunal. He identified himself as merely a voter, not a PDP member or supporter. However, during cross-examination, he revealed that he reported his election day experiences to the PDP Ward Chairman and the PDP lawyer.
When asked why he chose to relay his complaints to a PDP lawyer despite not being a party member, and why he drafted his statement at the PDP headquarters, Ridwan failed to respond directly. He appeared to evade the question, repeatedly asking the lawyers to “come again.”
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