…no one can clear your names — Magaji
Social Democratic Party (SDP), governorship candidate in the March 18th 2023 election in Delta State, Olorogun Barr. Kenneth Gbagi, has mocked candidates of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and governor of the state, Sheriff Oborevwori, All Progressives Congress (APC), Ovie Augustine Omo-Agege and All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru for failing to appear before the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal to clear themselves of allegations bordering on forgery and falsifications.
Oborevwori, Omo-Agege and Ogboru had failed to make their personal appearances to clear their names of allegations levelled against them by the renowned Criminologist, before the three-man Panel of Justices at the tribunal, headed by Justice H.C Ahuchaogu, sitting in Asaba, the State capital.
The 3rd Respondent, Oborevwori, was represented by the Director of Election Management of the PDP,
Sunday Onoriode, who was cross examined by Paul Erokoro, SAN, one of Gbagi’s legal team counsels.
On the other hand, candidate of APGA, Ogboru, didn’t sent a representative but one Jerkins Ejiro Whisky, a witness who was docked told the tribunal under oath during cross examination that the party sent him to testify.
Similarly, former Deputy Senate President and candidate of the APC, Ovie Augustine Omo-Agege, had no representative at the tribunal apart from his counsel.
Reacting, Gbagi through his lead counsel, Mr. Magaji Mato Ibrahim, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), in an interview with journalists said: “Some who are supposed to come personally and clear their names failed to come as they sent a proxy to come and testify on their behalf.
“By the law, we know, when there is an allegation against you of criminal infraction and you decide on your own not to come to the tribunal to clear your name, you are sending somebody.
“Nobody can clear your name on an issue that you have done under oath.
“Most of the allegations we are having, they are the presentation of falsehood in affidavit, certifications that were falsed and none of them could come to say, no, I didn’t do so.
“So that we will be able to cross examine the person and fix him to the circumstances that he or she is guilty of what we are alleging, they didn’t do any of these. So, I am confident.
“We have two prayers. We have the main prayer and we have the alternative relief that we are also asking for. So, I am confident that if worse comes to worse, if the main relief is not granted, the alternative relief will be granted.
“Which is, the election must be cancelled and should be rescheduled for a fresh election by which time we have gotten all the other candidates disqualified and our client (petitioners) will remain the only candidate qualified. And we know the implication of that”.
Meanwhile, during cross examination of Oborevwori representative, he told the tribunal that “I stand for the 3rd Respondent, I was not there when he made his depone but as the Director of Election Management of our party, the PDP, I was conversant with all the documents he used for the election.
“I was not present when his parents named him but all the names that were given by his parents were contained in all the documents he presented to our party, the PDP and INEC.
“I am not aware that he answered names outside the names given to him by his parents but I am aware that all the names he answered are names given to him”.
“His patents named him Orowhedor Oborevwori Francis but his Uncle called him by name Sheriff which he later added to his name.
“The Uncle never changed his name, he added that name to him to be part of his name because of the love he has for him”.
Asked if he was aware the 3rd Respondent made the depone because he swore to different names at different time, Onoriode was unable to answer to the cross-examiner.
Onoriode told the tribunal that the 3rd Respondent is alive and affirmed that he lives within Nigeria.
Also, during cross examination, the witness, one Jerkins Ejiro Whisky, presented by Ogboru’s counsel by a member of Gbagi’s legal team, Paul Erokoro SAN, whether if he could show the tribunal the certificate of Ogboru, he said: “I am not here with the certificate but I know that he sworn to an affidavit that he has completed the school and the certificates are stated in his nomination form”.
Asked if he (witness) attended secondary school and whether he submitted his primary school result before gaining admission into secondary school, he said: “It was my father who took me to school”, an answer the threw the tribunal into laughter.
The APGA witness who was unarmed with relevant documents, said he has no knowledge whether Ogboru, did the one year compulsory National Youths Service Corps (NYSC).
He could not tell the tribunal the age of Ogboru as he could not equally furnish the tribunal whether he has seen the primary and NYSC certificates of Ogboru.
