The Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, at the Governorship Election Tribunal sitting in Awka today denied the allegation of multiple registration for last year’s governorship election as alleged by the petitioner, Dr. Chike Obidigbo.

He explained that he was registered in Lagos in 2011 but on return to Anambra to contest for the governorship election, he applied for a transfer of his registration to Anambra.

Obiano said: “I went to the Electoral Officer in Otuocha on the morning of 19th August, 2013 to ascertain the process of transferring my registration from Lagos to Anambra State and to do it at a booth near to my house at Aguleri. The Electoral Officer, Mr. Nsofor asked me to write an application and attach my voter card. I did so same day and when I submitted that to him, he told me to come back in two days time.

“I went back on the 21st August, 2013 hoping to pick the card. I was told to fill a form and I also did my biometrics that day. He then told me to pick the card in two weeks. On the 3rd of September, 2013, I went to the Resident Electoral Commissioner office in Awka to pick up the new card.

“At any point in time, I didn’t have two voter’s cards. The valid voter card I used during the election was the one given to me at the EO’s office here in Anambra.”

Responding to a question during cross examination by counsel to the petitioner, Oba Maduabuchi, on whether the details on Exhibit 402, the voters register for Eri Primary

School was not his, the governor said that the name written there as well as the age is his, adding that he cannot vouch for the picture because he was not at Eri Primary School for registration but at the EO’s office at Otuocha.

Also confirming the details on Ex402, No 246 and 247, Obiano said that there was error in the age as he was 58 then, not 56 and the name was his but he could not vouch for the passport.

However, when the counsel to Obiano, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, sought to tender letter of transfer written by Obiano for transfer of his registration, the tribunal admitted it in evidence as R007 without any objections from the petitioner’s counsel but when he sought to tender the voters card, the petitioner’s counsel, Oba Maduabuchi objected to it on grounds that the witness has not been able to ascertain how he would identify the card.

On Mmaduabuchi’s argument, the tribunal Chairman, Hon. Justice Ishaq Bello, said that the issue is not adding another material but that it was the duty of the counsel to hammer on his own line of argument adding that if there exists another, it is the duty of petitioner to produce same.

The photocopy of the voter card was however admitted as evidence R010 while the original copy was returned to the witness.

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