In a surprising turn of events at the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has unexpectedly closed its case without calling any witnesses to defend its declaration of Senator Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the September 21, 2024, governorship election.
At the resumed hearing on Thursday, February 6, 2025, INEC’s counsel, Kanu Agabi (SAN), informed the tribunal that the commission would not be presenting any witnesses, despite having previously requested an adjournment to do so.
The decision stunned the courtroom, particularly the APC, which had anticipated witness testimonies to reinforce INEC’s position against the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Dr. Asue Ighodalo.
On Wednesday, February 5, 2025, INEC had sought more time, citing the unavailability of its witnesses and requesting an adjournment to February 6 to present five witnesses. However, when proceedings resumed, the commission failed to produce any witnesses and abruptly moved to close its case.
This follows INEC’s earlier submission of 152 BVAS machines as evidence under a PDP subpoena, presented by Anthony Itodo, a senior technical officer in its ICT department, to address allegations of over-voting.
Following INEC’s withdrawal, counsel for Governor Okpebholo and the APC, Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN) and D. C. Dewigwe (SAN), requested an adjournment to prepare their witnesses and open their defence.
The tribunal has adjourned proceedings to February 10, 2025.
