THIS DAY——-The legislative house election petitions tribunal sitting in Ilorin, Kwara State capital will today deliver a ruling in a petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Kwara central senatorial district during the March 28 National Assembly, Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq against the electoral victory of the Senate President and candidate of Kwara Central senatorial district under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bukola Saraki.
The three-man tribunal panel is led by Justice Josiah Majebi.
The PDP candidate, in a petition marked NAT/LEG/EPT/IL/2/2015 is challenging Saraki’s victory, claiming that he won the majority votes and he should be declared winner.
THISDAY checks revealed that the Justice Josiah Majebi-led three-man tribunal panel would on the whole deliver four judgments.
Other matters are: Hon. Lola Ashiru vs Senator Rafiu Ibrahim (Kwara South senatorial district); while two others, Babatunde Olusola vs Hon. Olufunke Adedoyin and Tajudeen Abioye vs Hon. Tope Olayonu are House of Representatives cases.
Sources close to the counsel in the affected election petitions told THISDAY that the tribunal had communicated the judgment date to them as promised by the chairman on September 4, 2015 when the final written addresses were adopted.
While adopting his final written address, counsel to Saraki, Mallam Yusuf Ola-Olu Ali (SAN) had asked the tribunal to dismiss the petition, saying the petitioner failed to prove his case beyond reasonable doubt.
Ali also observed that a forensic report tendered in evidence was dated March 28, 2014, a year before the contested poll was conducted.
“The date shows the document was prepared in anticipation of the election,” the legal luminary submitted.
He also said the four volume of forensic analysis report suffered “incurable and fundamental afflictions.”
He said the report was prepared by a Lagos based forensic analyst, Mrs. Nkolly Asika Obumse, who is also the wife of Abdulrasaq’s counsel, Francis Obumse.
Also, counsel to INEC and APC, second and third respondents, Abdulwahab Bamidele and Alarape Salman (SAN), respectively, agreed with Ali’s submission, praying the tribunal to dismiss the petition.
Francis Obumse who led the petitioner’s counsel also adopted his final written address.
