CURRENT REPORT BLOG provide a brief summary of the proceedings from the live court case that took place on Thursday, June 22, 2023. The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT) case involves Labour party witnesses, and we highlight the key points discussed during the proceedings. CURRENT REPORT BLOG makes you updated on daily activities of court proceeds .
Proceedings Overview
The court proceedings began at approximately 2:46 pm, led by Dr. Livy Uzoukwu SAN as the legal counsel for the LP (name of party). PIN Ikwueto SAN presided over the proceedings. Notably, HE Peter Obi was absent, and the LP was represented by Comrade Ladi Iliya (LP Dep. National Chair) and Chris Maigida (Dep. Dir Legal Services, APC).
Witness Cross-Examination
During the cross-examination, witness PW8, Chibuike Ugboke, a Cyber Security Expert, was called up. The following are the key highlights of his cross-examination:
LP contacted him around March 10, 2023.
He conducted an elaborate report, including a preliminary report on March 17th and 18th, and a final report in mid-May. He reviewed the petition and replies during his report’s preparation.
He stated that the chances of error during the testing stage of an App are possible but negligible during the deployment stage.
He used three polling units as proof concepts/examples to display the metadata.
He performed all tasks on his computer, and it was not his responsibility to ensure proper collation of results.
He is familiar with AWS (Amazon Web Services) and its three properties: confidentiality of data, integrity, and availability. However, he clarified that AWS does not guarantee the security of its infrastructure.
He confirmed that when INEC mentioned “BVAS & iREV has come to stay and uploading of results will happen in real-time,” it implied electronic collation.
He did not inspect the BVAS or interview Festus Okoye as mentioned in the referred document. He also stated that he was unaware of PDP winning in a referenced LGA (Local Government Area) and LP winning 95% of votes in Anambra State.
He mentioned 23 pages of metadata and referred to Anambra, Bauchi, and Rivers States.
He clarified that agreements on security features are known to parties who can unlock them, but the service level is known and not displayed to the public.
The next witness, Barr Emmanuel Edet (PW9), the Head of Legal Services Dept at NITDA, was called up. The highlights of his examination in chief were as follows:
His subpoena demanded three documents related to infrastructure for conducting elections, clearance approval/certificates issued to INEC by NITDA, and the report submitted by INEC regarding BVAS and electronic transmission.
He failed to provide any of the requested documents.
Respondent objections were raised during his cross-examination, citing the lack of a witness statement on oath. Further reasons will be provided in the final address.
Other Testimonies and Adjournment:
The witness, Yunusa Tanko (PW10), a member of LP, LP Situation Room, and an accountant, was called up. His witness statement on oath, receipts, and letters sent to INEC were tendered and admitted by the court. He will be cross-examined on Friday 23rd June 2023.
The proceedings concluded around 6 pm and were adjourned until Friday, June 23rd, 2023, at 3 pm.
