Kaduna, Nigeria – The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and its gubernatorial candidate, Hon. Isa Ashiru Kudan, informed the gubernatorial election petition tribunal on Tuesday that they have gathered a total of 25 witnesses who will testify against their opponents.
Samuel Atung (SAN), the counsel representing the petitioners, revealed this during the pre-hearing proceedings before the three-panel justices in Kaduna.
During the session, Atung stated that among the witnesses, 23 are electoral officers who will provide testimony through examination-in-chief, cross-examination, and re-examination.
After thorough deliberation, Justice Victor Oviawe, the Chairman of the three-man panel, allotted seven minutes for examination-in-chief, 12 minutes for cross-examination, and three minutes for re-examination.
Representatives of the 1st respondent, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the 2nd respondent, Governor Uba Sani, and the 3rd respondent, APC, were present in court. They requested the services of interpreters.
The court instructed that all interlocutory applications should be filed before the close of work on the following day, emphasizing the importance of adhering to the timeline.
Furthermore, all counsels involved in the petitions adopted the filed answer documents. The PDP counsel was directed to respond within four days upon receiving the application from the respondents’ counsels, while the respondents’ counsels were given two days to respond as well.
The case was adjourned until June 15, 2023, for the hearing.