The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal has dismissed 10 out of 13 witnesses presented by Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party.
Justice Haruna Tsammani, who presided over the delivery of judgment on the e substantive petition filed by Obi and LP, said this on Wednesday.
Tsammani made known that Obi called 13 witnesses, who testified as PW1 to PW13, noting that of the 13 witnesses, only three witnesses, who had provided sworn statements, were included with the petition.
Justice Tsammani said that the remaining 10 witnesses were subpoenaed, but their witness statements on oath were only filed after the hearing had already begun.
Justice Tsammani ruled that, by virtue of Section 285 of the Nigerian Constitution, Section 137(7) of the Electoral Act 2022, and other provisions, every witness statement on oath must be filed along with the petition. He also said that, based on the Supreme Court’s authority, the content of an election petition cannot be amended once the 21-day window for filing it has elapsed.
The judge further explained that no additional witness statement on oath can be filed after the deadline has passed, as the respondents would not have the opportunity to respond.
Justice Tsammani said that the petitioners were aware of the legal requirement to file witness statements on oath along with the petition, but they still presented 10 witnesses without their witness statements on oath.
Details later…