More exhibits were on Wednesday tendered against Nse Bassey Ekpenyong, a serving member of the House of Representatives, representing Oron Federal Constituency of Akwa- Ibom State in the National Assembly who is standing trial for forgery and uttering of documents before Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court sitting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
At the resuming hearing of the matter on Wednesday , prosecution counsel, Ahmed I. Arogha informed the court of an amended ten count charge against the defendant. Ekpenyong was originally arraigned on a 9-count charge of forgery and uttering of documents. The judge ordered the amended charges to be read to him and he pleaded not guilty as before.
Arogha went ahead to present more evidences against the defendant through his third prosecution witness, Usman Adoke, an operative of the EFCC. Among the documents tendered were various correspondences between the EFCC and Abia State Polytechnic, WAEC, and Access Bank statements of account. The documents were admitted as exhibits by the court.
Also tendered are more documents from INEC (Independent National Electoral Commission). The documents are contained in Form CF 001. They comprised Ekpenyong’s Abia State Polytechnic’s Ordinary National Diploma in Business Administration Certificate and Statement of Result, and his St. Vincent’s Secondary School Certificate (WAEC). All these are the documents he used to contest election in 2015. All the documents were tendered by the prosecution and marked as exhibits by the court.
Ekpenyong was alleged to have forged an Abia State Polytechnic Ordinary National Diploma Certificate and uttered a 1999 West African Examination School Certificate, WASSCE, and thereby committed perjury before an Electoral Tribunal where he claimed that the certificates are genuine.
Justice Ojukwu adjourned the matter to 4 May, 2017 for continuation of trial. Count one of the charge read: “That you Nse Bassey Ekpeyong on or about the 22nd November, 2012 at Uyo within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did make a document to wit: Abia State Polytechnic National Diploma Certificate in Business Administration with Certificate No. 001181 dated 22nd November, 2012 with intent that it may be acted upon as genuine which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (2) (c) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act CAP M 17 of the Revised Edition (Laws Of the Federation of Nigeria) 2007 and punishable under Section 1 (2) of the same Act”.
