This was obviously the only cross examination question that was unopposed, yet unanswered by Barr Emmanuel Enoidem, first witness of the first Respondent, who testified on July 31 as the PDP State Collation Officer who alongside over 50 other agents observed final collation of results during the Governorship Elections of March 9,2019.
This question lightheartedly brought to climax, a very heated afternoon at the High Court 8 courtroom located off FULGA road in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.
At the opening of defense in the petition by Obong Nsima Ekere, challenging the victory of Governor Udom Emmanuel, it was a time of disappointment and murmuring among several supporters of APC, as they watched Barr Emmanuel Enoidem tender local government results, units and wards results from the 329 wards of the state in INEC certified true copies. Enoidem also was quick to admit that the last general election was the best to be conducted by INEC in Akwa Ibom State since 1999.
The Counsel to the petitioners, Prof Ernest Ojukwu SAN, practically had an uphill task, cross examining Barr Enoidem who stood effortlessly in the witness box for more than six hours as the defense team’s star witness.
At some point, the whispers across the courtroom among APC supporters, was, “this lawyer does not even know how to ask Enoidem questions at all, I dont know why the other one did not come?.” (Apparently bemoaning the absence of J.S. Okutepa,SAN).
Ojukwu had battled to ask him questions, with reference to voters register which the court overruled.
Despite Assam’s insistence that his witness should not answer questions on documents he neither tender nor made, Enoidem himself admitted that he will answer the question since he was conversant with the contending document, a voter’s register of his own polling unit.
OJUKWU: “Check the box beside your name under the column G/HA(Governorship/House of Assembly)
He was able to show the tribunal his name, and where he thump printed and wrote his phone number, in the register after accreditation, before he also went further to ask the learned senior law officer to bring the card reader report of his unit to cross check that the accreditation was duly carried out.
ENOIDEM: “Yes my lord, I have seen it and it is ticked to prove that I was accredited.”
But Prof Ernest Ojukwu,SAN rather went to bring ward registers of other places to cross examine him, again drawing reactions from the Counsel to the 1st Respondent, Assam Assam,SAN.
PROF OJUKWU: But this witness has assumed the status of an all knowing, he should… ” he was however told by Justice Yakubu to limit his questions to issues within the purview of the RW1.
Once he asked Enoidem to affirm that many units in three wards of his own local government area were cancelled, the PDP NLA answered in the affirmative and quickly went on to tell the tribunal that he had already explained that those wards were enmeshed in crises caused by APC sponsored thugs, hence the cancellation. Enoidem narrated how hoodlums invaded some wards and took materials meant for elections to the compound of Senator Godswill Akpabio in Ukana, Essien Udim local government area.
There was a mini battle of Armageddon when Ojukwu tried to hush Enoidem from completing his answer, as Assam stood up to tell their lordships that his witness had the right to answer the questions put before him.
“Assam stop wasting my time,” Ojukwu told Assam, who quickly shouted him down that he had no such powers to allege that his objections were a waste of time. But Justice A. M. Yakubu and his 3 Man panel of judges were interested in the explanations offered by Barr. Enoidem, and told Ernest Ojukwu,SAN this much in clear terms. Prof allow him to finish, we are recording him. Witness you said you saw the thugs…?
ENOIDEM: “Yes my lord, they were brought in 50 buses from Edo state. When they were arrested by the police and taken to the police headquarters at Ikot Akpan Abia, they confessed to being brought…”
PROF. OJUKWU: (cuts in again…) “Now wait, listen to my next question, turn to the last page of your deposition and check the last…”
ASSAM: “My lord I dont understand this again, he has not allowed my witness to complete…”
OJUKWU: “I am not interested”
ASSAM: “We dont need to go through this all over again, when your witnesses came, we did not stop them from giving their responses…”
JUSTICE YAKUBU: (to the witness) “they where arrested by the police and taken to…?”
ENOIDEM: “They confessed to the police that they were sponsored by the petitioner Nsima Ekere and they had APC tags on them and…
PROF OJUKWU: (interupting in a very large tone) I say take a look at the last paragraph of your deposition.
ENOIDEM: ” I am there.
JUSTICE YAKUBU: “I hope this is your last question?”
OJUKWU: “Yes my lord. Now show this tribunal where you affixed the NBA stamp on the as a lawyer”?
The entire court erupted in laughter as the witness was discharged from the dock.
The tribunal was adjourned to Thursday, August 1 for a continuation of hearing.
(C) Essien Ndueso August 1, 2019
