Judge refuses Yama’s request

By ELIAS NANAU
NATIONAL Court judge Colin Makail has refused to grant an order requested by losing Usino-Bundi candidate Peter Yama to move ballot boxes now under the care of Madang election manageress Emily Siamoli to the Jomba police station.
Yama’s lawyer Zachery Gelu told Makail on Wednesday that they were concerned about the likely tampering of ballot papers.
“We submit that the ballot boxes are kept safely at Jomba (police station) rather than at the electoral office,” he said.
Gelu asked that the court could use its po­wers to make interlo­cutory orders because safeguarding of ballot boxes from unexpected tampering would help in one of the orders that Yama was seeking in his election petition the recount of ballot papers.
“One of the orders in the petition is for a recount,” Gelu said.
Makail said he could grant the order if there “was any evidence of tampering with ballot boxes now in the custody of Siamoli”.
“I have to be satisfied that there is tampering of ballot boxes at this point in time. There is no evidence of tampering.”