The National Election Commission’s second Magistrate has challenged Edith Gongloe-Weh, who filed a complaint for alleged fraud and irregularity, to produce evidence of broken seal.
Giving his testimony on Wednesday, January 20, 2021, during the hearing at NEC, Magistrate Bledoh Flomo told the hearing that Gongloe-Weh should produce photographs to authenticate her case.
Further addressing the issue of alleged broken seal, he told the hearing that the precincts named in her complaint, to include 33010, 33080, 33250, 33069, 33077 33079, 33071 and 33179—there were no broken seal and no broken Tempered Evidence Envelop (TEEs)
The Magistrate admitted to the hearing that the TEEs where not missing but misplaced and found, and that is why the tallying of the various centers involved were conducted in the presence of representatives of political parties.
He further testified that the Collaborating Political Party (CPP) representative abandoned the tallying process on the last day of the senatorial election in Nimba County.
Magistrate Flomo said political parties’ representatives should not expect NEC to wait for them during tallying if they deliberately abandon the process without a notice of excuse.
He said his records show that no complaint has been filed, even though the CPP candidate left the tally room for reasons best known to herself.
It can be recalled that Milton G. Paye, NEC’s first witness, testified Monday, January 18, 2021, that supporters of Edith Gongloe-Weh mistakenly took the photo of the referendum ballots boxes for the senatorial ballot boxes and alleged that ballot boxes containing ballot papers were opened.
During his testimony, he presented a photo with yellow ballot boxes, which is believed to be the same photo presented by Edith as evidence against NEC, in an attempt to establish a case of fraud and irregularities—that ballot boxes were allegedly tampered with.
According to him, this year’s senatorial election has the blue color ballot boxes that contained senatorial ballot papers, while the yellow color ballot boxes were used for the referendum in the senatorial elections in Nimba County.
It can be recalled that Edith Gongloe-Weh filed a complaint against the National Elections Commission and co-respondent, Jeremiah Koung, alleging irregularities and suspected fraud, among other things, which, according to her, gave another candidate undue substantial advantage in the outcome of the senatorial election in Nimba County.