Tribunal admits Adebutu’s 8,000 exhibits against Dapo Abiodun

By Adejoke Adeleye

The Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Ogun State has admitted the 8,000 exhibits documents tendered by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Oladipupo Adebutu against Governor Dapo Abiodun in the 2023 governorship election.

Adebutu had on Tuesday, 4th of July, tendered 8,000 documents exhibits in ‘Ghana must Go” in court so as to have them admitted from the bar.

But, the respondents requested two days to be allowed to inspect the documents before they could be admitted.

On Thursday, the counsel to the petitioners, Goddy Uche, informed the tribunal that the respondents had inspected the documents as ordered.

Speaking, counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Remi Olatubora, confirmed that the documents were as released by the commission.

In her words counsel to Abiodun, Titilola Akinlawon, confirmed that the documents had been inspected, but that the second respondent, Gov. Dapo Abiodun, would reserve his objection to the admissibility of the documents till the final addresses.

Likewise, lawyer to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Onyechi Ikpeazu, also maintained that the party’s objections to some of the documents are reserved till the final addresses.

Ruling, the chairman of the tribunal, Justice Hamidu Kunaza admitted all the exhibits from the bar.

“All documents are to be admitted from the bar and objections reserved till final addresses,” the tribunal ruled.

Some of the documents admitted include: 176-page BVAS reports; one certificate of compliance; an INEC receipt; Form EC8A – declaration of result from INEC; Form EC8D – summary of results from local governments; Form EC8Cs for the 20 LGAs; Form EC8Bs for Abeokuta North, Abeokuta South, Ado-Odo/Ota, Egbado North, Egbado South, Ewekoro, Ifo, Ijebu North, Ijebu North East, Ijebu-Ode, Ikenne and others.