₦airaland Forum

How Okpebholo, INEC Lawyers Crumbled Against the PDP’s Star Witness

The Edo State election tribunal, relocated to Abuja and sitting on Tuesday after an adjournment in Benin on Friday last week, was meant to be a legal masterclass, with Nigeria’s most renowned lawyers lining up to dismantle the PDP’s case. Instead, they found themselves floundering, contradicting their own arguments, and unwittingly strengthening the case against them.

At the center of the storm was PW12, the PDP’s star witness, who quietly walked into the courtroom and proceeded to demolish the opposition with composure, clarity, and an unshakable grasp of the facts.

INEC’s 24-Minute Surrender

First to step up was the counsel for INEC (1st respondent), who came in brimming with confidence, eager to cast doubt on PW12’s testimony. INEC’s counsel pressed PW12 on whether his statement relied on reports from agents and experts, assuming this would expose a weakness. Instead, PW12 calmly set the record straight: his testimony was based solely on his personal and direct examination of the election documents.

Flustered, INEC’s lawyer tried a different approach—asking how Barr. Ighodalo could have won the election if the majority of votes cast were unlawful. But PW12 delivered a response so precise it left the courtroom stunned:

“After you remove the invalid votes—those rendered unlawful by INEC’s non-compliance—Asue scored the majority of lawful votes.”

INEC’s lawyer had no comeback. Stumbling, he cut short his allotted 40-minute cross-examination after just 24 minutes and handed the remaining time to the 2nd respondent’s lawyer.

Okpebholo’s Fatal Exhibit

If INEC’s fumble was bad, counsel representing Okpebholo (2nd respondent), managed to do even worse—by accidentally proving the PDP’s case alleging non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

Okpebholo’s lawyer’s focus during his cross-examination was on Form EC25B, the document meant to record the serial numbers of sensitive election materials. The law is clear: if these serial numbers aren’t recorded, the polling unit’s result is automatically invalid. The lawyer, believing he had a knockout argument, proudly presented Exhibit PJF—the INEC manual for election officials—and directed PW12 to page 15, which described Form EC25D.

It was a disastrous mistake.

PW12 didn’t even blink. Instead, he calmly turned to page 20 of the same manual and pointed out INEC’s own instructions stating that EC25B—not EC25D—was the form required for prior recording. The lawyer had walked himself into a trap.

Undaunted, Okpebholo’s lawyer tried a new angle—boldly claiming that no EC25Bs had been filled at all. But PW12 was ready. Without hesitation, he pointed to Exhibit PJE1-11, a set of EC25Bs where some presiding officers had indeed filled in serial numbers, though incompletely. The lawyer had just helped prove INEC’s inconsistency—and non-compliance.

There was nothing left to salvage. The 2ns respondent’s lawyer had given PW12 the tools to dismantle his own argument, and the courtroom knew it.

APC’s Bumpy Ride

By the time counsel for the APC (3rd respondent), took over, the air in the courtroom had shifted. The PDP’s star witness had already brushed aside the lawyers for the 1st and 2nd respondent, and APC’s lawyer seemed determined to rattle him.

He tried sheer aggression and practiced impatience, but PW12 just smiled, calm and unshaken.

APC’s lawyer opened with a blatant mistake, claiming that 4,519 polling unit results had been uploaded to INEC’s IREV. The witness corrected him instantly: only 4,466 had been uploaded.

Trying to regain control, he presented 16 polling unit agent copies and demanded that PW12 confirm only 3 were stamped. PW12 nodded but pointed out that 16 polling units represented less than 1% of the total—statistically insignificant. Any conclusions drawn from that tiny sample, he argued, could not be used to dismiss the broader case.

Frustrated, the lawyer launched into a last-ditch attack on PW12’s credibility, arguing that since he was not physically present at the polling units or RAC centers, he could not speak to what happened there.

PW12 remained composed, then delivered his final, devastating response:

“In the tribunal sitting in Abuja, you identified that 13 out of 16 documents were not stamped. Did you need to be at the polling unit to make this determination? My testimony is based on my personal examination of election documents—documents that show Asue won.”

It was the final blow. APC’s lawyer had been outmaneuvered, just like the others.

The Star Witness Who Exposed the Fraud

What was meant to be a systematic dismantling of the PDP’s case instead turned into a legal bloodbath—for the defense.

INEC’s lawyer was left defeated, his 40-minute cross-examination cut short in frustration; Okpebholo’s lawyer presented evidence that destroyed his own argument; APC’s counsel tried bullying but was outclassed and outmaneuvered .

When the dust settled, the respondents lawyers had not only failed to discredit PW12 but may have helped the PDP prove their case against INEC and Sen. Monday Okpebholo.

Umarnuhu1990:
https://leaders.ng/2025/01/30/edo-how-three-senior-advocates-crumbled-against-the-pdps-star-witness/

Stargala:
Gbam Edo no be Lago! ! 🤒

oluseyiforjesus:
Judiciary is in d pocket of APC
APC pay d salary of the judge so ........

Umarnuhu1990:
https://leaders.ng/2025/01/30/edo-how-three-senior-advocates-crumbled-against-the-pdps-star-witness/

Kennitrust:
You can't defend APC with a normal brain, never!

trytillmake:
Whomever wrote this article the guy supposed dey write movie

Kingray10:
However the case go, I know for sure that the the judgment will still favor APC.