The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Benue State, Emmanuel Jime, has requested the Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Makurdi, the State capital, to grant him additional time for sorting of documents.
Jime is challenging the victory of Governor Samuel Ortom in the March 2019 governorship election in the State.
The Tribunal had commenced full hearing with the tendering of documents by the Jime and the APC.
When the case resumed on Tuesday, Kehinde Eleja, SAN, and others appeared for Jime and Sebastine Hon, SAN appeared for Governor Ortom, Oba Maduabuchi, SAN, appeared for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and Uyi Oguma, SAN, appeared for the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The Tribunal Chairman, Justice Adebola Olusiyi gave counsels to the parties in the suit the opportunity to sort out and agree on documents to be tendered.
When that was done, Justice Olusiyi admitted the tendered documents and marked them as exhibits P1 – P410. which were accepted as exhibits P1- P410.
Counsel to Jime and the APC, Eleja thereafter moved for an extension of time to enable all parties in the suit inspect, sort and agree on the documents to be tendered.
Counsels to the respondents did not object, but Governor Ortom’s counsel, Hon said there should be no further extension of time for sorting of documents as that ought to have been done before now.
The Tribunal Chairman, Justice Olusiyi thereafter extended the time for sorting of documents to today, Wednesday, July 10, 2019 and adjourned to Thursday, July 11,2019 for continuation of hearing.
