OSUN GOVERNORSHIP: Tension looms as A’Court decides Oyetola, Adeleke’s fate today

There is palpable tension in Osun State as the current governor, Adegboyega Oyetola and the contender for his position from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Senator Ademola Adeleke know their fate at the Abuja Appeal court today.

Ripples Nigeria had gathered that some of the workers at the state government secretariat yesterday organized prayer sessions in respect of the court hearing today.

The Court of appeal had earlier fixed today, Thursday for the judgment on the row that arose from the September 2018 governorship election in Osun State.

The court, while issuing notices on the judgment to both Adeleke and Oyetola had served on the four pending appeals relating to the disputed poll.

Recall that a five-man panel led by Justice Jummai Sankey had, on April 24, heard three appeals and a cross-appeal filed in relation to the Osun State governorship election and reserved its judgments on the appeal.

With Justice Sankey ruling, other members of the appeal panel which heard the four appeals were Justices Abubakar Yahaya, George Mbaba, Isaiah Akeju and Bitrus Sanga.

At the hearing on April 24, Governor Oyetola, his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission urged the court to upturn the March 22, 2019 majority judgment of the state Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which nullified the governor’s victory at the September 2018 poll.

Meanwhile, his PDP counterpart, Senator Adeleke, who was declared winner of the election by the tribunal urged the Court of Appeal to affirm the tribunal’s judgment.

Governor Oyetola had been declared the winner of the Osun governorship election by INEC based on the total result arising from September 22, 2018, the main election and the supplementary poll that was held on September 27, 2018.

However, Adeleke and his party, PDP, displeased with the outcome of the election filed their petition before the three-man Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, contending that they were the true winner of the September 22, 2018 election saying that there was no need for the supplementary election held on September 27, 2018.

The tribunal, in its March 22, 2019 split judgment of two-to-one, nullified Oyetola’s victory and declared Adeleke and the PDP the winner of the election.

The tribunal’s chairman, Justice Ibrahim Sirajo, in his minority judgment, dissented from the majority judgment credited to Justices Peter Obiorah and Adegboye Gbolagunte.

The trio of Oyetola, APC and INEC had filed separate appeals challenging the majority judgment.

Although, in the overall, the majority judgment of the tribunal was in their favour, both Adeleke and PDP had filed a cross-appeal to challenge the aspect of the verdict which held that they failed to prove the allegation of over-voting raised in their petition.

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At the April 24 hearing, Oyetola’s lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), urged the Court of Appeal to uphold his client’s case and nullify the majority judgment of the tribunal.

He contended that Justice Obiorah, who wrote the lead majority judgment, was absent from the tribunal’s proceedings of February 6, 2019.

The senior lawyer maintained that Justice Obiorah’s non-signing of the day’s proceedings was sufficient evidence that he was absent from the proceedings.

Citing various Supreme Court judgments to back his argument, Olanipekun said Justice Obiorah’s presence or otherwise “goes to the root of fair hearing.”

He said contrary to the claim by the counsel for Adeleke and the PDP, there was no conflict in the tribunal’s record, as it was clear from the record that Justice Obiorah was absent from the proceedings of February 6, 2019.

He also maintained that the deduction of results said to have been afflicted by non-compliance and the declaration of Adeleke as the winner by the tribunal clearly violated the provision of section 140(2) of the Electoral Act, which, according to him, only empowers an election tribunal to order a re-run when allegation of substantial non-compliance of the Electoral Act is proved.

In his response, the lawyer representing both the PDP and Adeleke, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), urged the tribunal to dismiss the appeal and uphold the majority judgment of the tribunal.

On the issue of the absence of Justice Obiorah on the February 6, 2019 proceedings of the tribunal, Ikpeazu said there was a conflict in the record of the tribunal given the fact that the list of judges who sat that day contained Justice Obiorah’s name, but only that the judge did not sign the proceedings.

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