In a statement by his spokesperson, Parry Saroh Benson, Senator Abe declared that the ruling was pre-determined and wondered how the tribunal expected him to produce over 1,000 witnesses within five days when it admitted between two to three witnesses in a day and at the same time write an address to be submitted within 24 hours. He contended that the court knew it was practically impossible to sustain it. He also rejected a situation where the court refused to admit any of the evidence given against the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in the conduct of the election while delivering its ruling. According to the statement, “I consider what happened today (Tuesday) in court as nothing but a case of Judicial 419. How can the court give us five days to produce over 1,000 witnesses from all the polling units in the senatorial district when they admitted two to three witnesses in a day? The court knew from the very beginning that it was impossible to sustain such and that was why they dragged us from one motion to the other which was neither here nor there. “Nigerians knew that there was no election in Rivers State. We are going to appeal the ruling at the Appeal Court.”]]>