Monrovia – Lawyers representing the legal interests of Unity Party (UP) in the on-going alleged case of electoral fraud and irregularities have ended their production of witnesses and evidences before the National Elections Commission (NEC) hearing officer.
Report by Henry Karmo, [email protected]
UP was on Friday denied by NEC Hearing Officer, Cllr Muana Ville, a request to allow UP Party Chair and vice president for Inter party and NEC Affairs (Wilmot Paye and Cole Bangalu) to take the witness stand to testify on one of the evidences produced where one person voted three times with separate voters ID in Montserrado County.
NEC defend team headed by Cllr. Musa Dean has been given the chance to produce witnesses and pieces of evidence to counter witnesses and evidence produced by the UP.
Production of witness should have started Friday but Cllr. Dean requested the hearing officer to postpone the matter to Monday.
Unity Party announced that it had more than 15 witnesses and has produced up to six witnesses including Cllr. Frances Johnson Allison, former NEC Chair, Mr. Josiah Joekai, former head of Civic Voters Education of NEC, Mr. Wilmot Paye, Chairman of the Unity Party, Mr. Jeff Blibo, a computer engineer and member of a support group for Boakai presidency and Cole Bangalu, UP vice president for Inter Party Affairs, amongst others.
On Wednesday the Supreme Court of Liberia summoned the two parties in the case Charles Walker Brumskine and Harrison Karnwea Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates of the Liberty Party versus The National Elections Commission (NEC) and Unity Party as co-complainant.
The Court had issued the writ through a sheriff.
The writ was a result of a Bill of Information filed to it by co-complainant Unity Party of being denied necessary documents requested from the National Elections Commission through a subpoena.
According to the co-complainant, after being denied by the Hearing Officer, Cllr. Muana Ville, the request to subpoena documents, which include the Presiding Officers’ Worksheets and addendum listing as well as investigative reports in the Amos Siebo case amongst others, they took appeal to the Board of Commissioners and it’s been more than a week the NEC board has not responded which led them to file a Bill of Information to the Supreme Court.