The Bayelsa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja, has ordered the state’s Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo to appear before it on June 4 to produce the original copy of his disputed certificate.
The order of the Tribunal followed a subpoena earlier issued on Ewhrudjakpo to appear and produce the original of the exemption certificate issued to him by the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in 1998.
The subpoena was issued on the request of the candidate of the Liberation Movement (LM) Vijah Opuama in the November 16, 2019 governorship election in Bayelsa, challenging Ewhrudjakpo’s qualification to stand for the election.
Another governorship candidate contesting the certificate is Ebizimo Diriyai.
Both had alleged that the deputy governor submitted a forged exemption certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the election.
Read Also: Bayelsa State gets highest IGR of N1.2 billion in 12 months
Although, Ewhrudjakpo had, by a motion filed at the Tribunal on May 17, 2020 challenged the competence of the subpoena and prayed the Tribunal to set it aside, but his counsel Chukwuma Ume, on Tuesday withdrew his motion that his client is no longer challenging the subpoena and was ready to attend the Tribunal’s sitting.
Counsel for the petitioner, Dande Pius and other parties in the matter did not oppose the application for the withdrawal.
The Tribunal Chairman, Justice Ibrahim Sirajo struck out the motion and ordered Ewhrudjakpo’s appearance on Thursday, the 4th of June, 2020.
Editor: Tunde Orebiyi.
