Date Published: 10/08/09

There was massive turn out of voters at Ifaki -Fayemi

Action Congress (AC) governorship candidate stunned audience at the Ekiti State Rerun Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal today when he said under cross examination that there was massive turn out of voters at Ifaki Ekiti, Ido/Osi Local Government Area.

Fayemi, who was Prosecution Witness (PW) 47 and the last witness called by the AC, was asked to read the content of a report from The Guardian newspaper of April 26, 2009 that he (Fayemi) tendered as exhibits 30 and 34 and he read it thus: “At Ifaki Ekiti, the hometown of the PDP candidate, there was a massive turn out of voters.”

When asked by the counsel to the 6 th and 7 th respondents Mr. N. N. O Oke (SAN), if he knew that newspaper reports cannot be deemed as accurate to be tendered as evidence in court, Fayemi noted that; “I am experience enough to sift facts from fiction. It is not everything in the newspaper that is always correct, but majority of them are accurate.”

Oke further asked him if he had been told that on several occasions counsel have had to protest to the tribunal that the newspaper reports were not in the records of the court and their accuracy were in doubt, Fayemi noted that he was not aware.

Counsel to the second respondent, Obafemi Adewale had also during cross examination asked Fayemi to name those he alleged were putting pressure on the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mrs. Ayoka Adebayo to resign after the rerun election and to this he (Fayemi) told the tribunal that the REC did not mention any name.

When Adeale asked further if Fayemi knew that some of witnesses that testified for his party had told the court that voting materials were distributed to all the poling units in Usi, Ifaki, and Orin/Ora Wards of ido/Osi Local Government, he (Fayemi) told the tribunal; “None of my witnesses could have said that to the best of my knowledge..”

Fayemi closed his case today while defence has been scheduled to commence on October 19, 2009.