...As respondents lack good defence and what to say in court.

Manfred Ekpe.

On the resumed trial of the above suit Monday 10/07/2023, PDP through its lawyer, jittery, begged the court to stand down the case till 3:pm. The tricks, according to an insider, is to beat the two days given to them to commence and close their case which was scheduled for 10 and 11 July 2023 since they have nothing important to say at the trial.

After closing of the case, the only process next is to give date for filing of written addresses and then date for judgment. It's now very clear there is palpable fear for judgment day hence PDP begins to enact delay tactics.

Recalled, last week on 5/7/2023 the Akwa Ibom State Govt agents of confusion made a whole lot of propaganda in the media that Senator Bassey Albert the petitioner was trying to run away from the case but that the court ordered him to close his case on 6/7/2023. And that they were ready to open and close their case within 2 days. They did not know that the judges wrote down this boast of them and ordered them to start and close their case in two days. Now they are jittery.

A claim that Senator Bassey Albert tried delaying the case was a very bad propaganda. It was Bassey Albert who applied for accelerated hearing in this case. This means he applied to the Tribunal that the case be heard speedily on a day to day basis.

Since the trial commenced, Senator Bassey Albert has not been absent from court for once, yet the government agents pulled out a propaganda that he was trying to delay the case.

In fact it is the PDP and the government that wish that OBA should withdraw the case or be jailed for the case to end the post election litigations. The court of appeal refused to jail OBA.

The fact is that the respondents in this case have very feeble, weak and limping defense. I have had the opportunity to read their reply to Senator Bassey Albert's Petition. In fact I read it all over again a few hours ago.

The weakness of the defense's case gives the reason that the PDP through their lawyers have suddenly asked for the case to be stood down to 3:pm. It is a strategy to run away from the case. If it were OBA's lawyers that asked for the standing down, by now government propagandists would have invaded the social media space with a whole lot of lies. Yet OBA's lawyers never opposed the application for standing down.

The respondents have been trying to introduce extraneous evidence they never pleaded in their pleadings in a futile effort to dislodge the testimony of Mr Daniel Edet Akpan the University of Uyo Admin Officer 1 which they claimed does not exist.

Information is that they have failed in effort to scout for evidence, hence the PDP decision to plead for standing down the case with OBA's lawyers never objecting knowing they will still have nothing to say even if given till December.

In the first place the law does not allow facts which were not pleaded to be introduced into proceedings during trial. Neither can they tender documents that were not frontloaded. How then do they want to introduce in allegedly altered UNIUYO payroll and other documents to show that Daniel Edet Akpan is not a staff of UNIUYO ?

I have been reading with mesmerizing humour government propaganda agents celebrating that the "court have admitted" certain documents. This they ignorantly do without knowing the meaning of "admission", the legal word they so often misuse.

In election petition matters, the court or tribunal has the prerogative to "provisionally admit" any type of document tendered by parties whether or not such document is relevant or admissible.

It is only during judgment that the court will make pronouncement on the relevance and admissibility of such documents (EXHIBITS). Hence, some of the documents celebrated as being "admitted" will be thrown out during judgement.

Watch out, these government Agents will celebrate later today the PROVISIONAL ADMISSION of worthless documents that will certainly be tendered today in court.

We call on respondents to go face their trial as boasted. OBA has closed his case with flying colors and on a very solid ground.