BEVERLY HILLS, July 13, (THEWILL) – There appears to be no end to the delay game as the Abia State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia, the state capital, again on Monday adjourned the commencement of pre-trial of the petition filed by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in the last general elections in the state, Dr. Alex Otti,to July 24.
The commencement of the pre-trial had earlier been scheduled for Monday .
In the petition, Dr. Otti is challenging the declaration of Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu as the winner of the election as he urged the tribunal to declare him (Otti) the rightful winner of the governorship election.
While adjourning sitting last Friday, the Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Usman Bwala, had said that pre-hearing of the petition would commence on Monday, July 13.
But when sitting commenced on Monday, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), Counsel to Gov. Ikpeazu, raised an objection against the commencement of the pre-trial session as announced by the chairman at the beginning of proceeding.
Basing his objection on Paragraph 18 of the Electoral Act, Olanipekun argued that his client was not served the motion for pretrial by the petitioner.
The argument was however punctured by Otti’s counsel, Chief Akin Olujimi,who said that under the said Act, service of pre-trial motion on the respondents was not mandatory.
Also citing a Supreme Court interpretation of the Act, Olujimi said the process had been simplified and that the application could be informal or by motion ex-parte as he insisted that the Act did not require the petitioner to put the respondents on notice.
Tribunal chairman, Justice Bwala, however overruled Olanipekun’s objection,saying the tribunal had last Friday reserved July 13 for the commencement of pre-trial and that none of the respondents raised any objections.
Following Olujimi’s plea that the respondents be served on the floor of the tribunal, Justice Bwala directed the clerk to immediately serve the notice on the first and second respondents, namely Gov. Okezie and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as he later adjourned hearing on the pending motions and the pre-trial to July 24 and 25.
