Following the rave being generated by the allegation that some judges presiding over the Cross River State Election Petitions Tribunal took underhand kick-back from politicians, a call has gone to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to conduct thorough investigation into the allegation.
A group, Cross River Youth for Justice Vanguard, had, earlier in the week, accused some tribunal judges in Cross River State of doing the bid of the ruling party in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party.
A statement signed by the group’s Chairman, Hon. John Ekanem, and Secretary, Takon Ebonja, called on the EFCC “to investigate the allegations against members of election petition tribunals, to which we (the group) will be supplying a petition to the anti-crime agency shortly.”
The group alleged that monies to the tune of N1 billion may have been deployed to compromise the course of justice at various election petition tribunals across the state.
It said: “From our findings it is clear that the state government bribed the tribunals with N1 billion. From all indications, it is an open secret that there was a strong romance between the state government and the tribunals and we are calling on the EFCC to probe the activities of the three tribunals that have just rounded off sittings in Cross River State.”
The group further accused the tribunal of giving contradicting judgments which, it said, “obviously go to favour the ruling PDP in the state”.
It said: “For instance, one tribunal ruled that the case between Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba and APC, and 9 others brought against Senator Sandy Onor, INEC, the PDP and others was a pre-election matter. But in another related case, the second tribunal in the matter by Chief Wabilly Nyiam of the APC against Senator Rose Oko of the PDP and Hon Dominic Aqua Edem of APC against Pastor Essien Ayi of the PDP and others ruled that it was a post election matter and it has jurisdiction.
“We therefore want the EFCC to turn its search light on these judges because we have it on good authority that they were compromised to protect the interest of the ruling party in Cross River state on the election petition cases before them.”
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