Liberia's electoral body claims subpoena by plaintiffs 'unrealistic'

09 Novembre 2017

Monrovia, Liberia, November 9 (Infosplusgabon) -  Lawyers of the National Elections Commission (NEC) in the hearing of complaints of irregularities and fraud filed by the Liberty Party (LP) and Unity Party (UP) have said  parts of the plaintiffs' subpoenas were "unrealistic and intended to delay" the hearing process.

They also claimed that some of the requests were “not practical and relevant”. These include asking the NEC to provide journals and worksheets from presiding officers at all 5,390 polling places around the country.

At the hearing on Wednesday, lawyers representing the LP and UP sought response from the defence team on a subpoena requesting the NEC to provide copies of the final voters' register, its addendums and work-sheets of presiding officers from various polling places around the country.

The plaintiff's lawyers also requested the NEC to provide a full report from investigation conducted at a polling centre in District #3 in Nimba County, where the presiding officer was allegedly arrested for tempering with ballots.

The complaint from the two political parties grew out of the 10 October general and presidential elections which they alleged had “widespread irregularities and fraud” that influenced the results.

NEC, following official tabulation of the total vote cast, declared a run-off election between the incumbent Vice President of the UP, Joseph Boakai and George Weah of the Coalition for Democratic Change.

The run-off election was scheduled for 7 November, but the LP filed a “Writ of Prohibition” to the Supreme Court of Liberia following delays from the NEC to look into its complaints.

The Supreme Court on Monday sustained the LP’s Writ of Prohibition and urged the NEC to halt all electoral matters leading to the run-off and speedily adjudicate the complaints of the LP.

At the first hearing on Tuesday, the NEC Independent Hearing Officer, Muana Ville, heard and sustained a motion filed by the UP to intervene in the case involving the LP, making the UP a party to the claims of irregularities and fraud in the first round.

Responding on Wednesday, the defence lawyers said they want the complainants to be specific and point directly to a particular polling centre or precinct where it said there were malpractices.

Following the argument, the Hearing Officer, in a ruling on the subpoena, indicated that the provision of voters' roll is genuine, but all addendums to voters roll could not be made available except where specific request is made.

He said the presiding officer work sheet as well as ballot boxes are kept at magisterial offices in every region where elections were conducted, and that the NEC could only respond to specific requests.

According to him, the case involving a presiding officer in Nimba County district #3 is of a criminal nature and that the hearing officer has no jurisdiction over said matter.

Hearing continues on Thursday at the headquarters of the NEC in Sinkor, outside Monrovia.

FIN/INFOSPLUSGABON/UIO/ GABON 2017

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