‘I was coerced to sign the Kogi presidential election results,’ PDP witness says.

Joe Agada, the PDP’s first witness on Thursday, said that the BVAS devices were altered in the most recent presidential election and that he was coerced into signing the results while serving as the state collation officer in Kogi State.

During his cross-examination in the Presidential Election Petition Court, where the results of the election on February 25 are being contested, retired captain Agada made this statement.

The trained pharmacist told the court that he had the chance to visit some polling units in some Local Government Areas. He was identified by the counsel for the Independent National Electoral Commission and the cross-examiner, Abdullahi Aliyu SAN, as a past witness in 2019 for the petitioners, the PDP and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

He provided a positive response when INEC’s attorney questioned him about a rumored manipulation of ballot papers and whether it took place in his presence.

More so, he also alleged that he was present while the BVAS devices were manipulated.

Aliyu had asked, ” You were present while the BVAS devices were also manipulated?”

“Yes, in not less than 20 Polling Units I visited across 2 senatorial districts.”

He acknowledged that he had spent between three and five minutes in the impacted areas.

Agada further claimed that INEC officials at the state level coerced him into signing the results.

He said that if he hadn’t signed the documents, his party would not have received a copy.

He said, ” I was forced to sign which I protested because without signing I was going to be denied a copy to my party.”

He, however, admitted that he did not mention the incident in his witness deposition.