TRIBUNAL: NON-APPEARANCE: SEN. PAM MWADKON MAY HAVE ABANDONED HIS WITNESS STATEMENT, AND THE ENTIRE DEFENSE—LEGAL LUMINARIES

By: Amb. Valentine Adese (JP),

The non-appearance of Sen. Dachungyang Pam Mwadkon, at the Plateau State National/State Houses of Assembly Election Tribunal sitting in Bauchi, Bauchi State, to personally testify over his alleged non-qualification to contest the Plateau North Senatorial District Election has been described as an abandonment of his defense by some Legal Luminaries.

The Lawyers who spoke to REALITY on the development via Telephone Interviews from Jos said, “The situation is even worse by the Respondents not calling other witnesses to give evidence on the matter and also to adopt their written depositions”. 

Although the weight of proof of the allegation is heavier on the part of the Petitioners, following the Nigerian Law and decided cases, the Lawyers posited that “This is quite different from the case of Alhaji Atiku vs Muhammadu Buhari, as most witnesses appeared for Buhari to testify and adopt their written statements/signed depositions.

“In other Petitions that were heard in most Tribunals that sat in Plateau state, if you observed very well, you would notice that witnesses were called by Respondents to testify too. See GNS vs Sen. Lalong and Hon. Baba Hassan and the PRP Candidate in the last House of Representatives election, among many others.

“Strangely, in this Petition, the Respondents did not call witnesses before closing their case and that is a situation that may define the moment.

“As Lawyers, we wait to see how this would go. You know in Law, no one can claim to know it all!” 

You would recall that REALITY had reported that the Senator representing Plateau North Senatorial District in the Upper Chambers of the National Assembly, Sen. Dachungyang Pam Mwadkon, failed to appear to defend allegations over his non-qualification to contest the last Senatorial election which he won at the ongoing trial of the Petition filed by Yakub Muhammed Shafiu and the NNPP at the Plateau State National/State Houses of Assembly Tribunal sitting in Bauchi State Tuesday.

Sen. D. Mwadkon and his party, the ADP, were also reported to have also failed to call any other witness before closing their defense the same Tuesday. REALITY gathered.