Osun Guber: Appeal court returns Adeleke’s mandate

By Vivian Okejeme

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has declared Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) authentic winner of the Osun State governorship poll held on July 16, 2022.

Adeleke was in court challenging the decision of the January 27 Governorship tribunal that ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw certificate of return from him and issue the same to Adegboyega Oyetola.

The 3-man panel of the Appeal court led by Justice Mohammed Shuaibu held that the appeal is meritorious and thereby allowed.

Ruling in the appeal, marked: CA/AK/EPT/GOV/01/2023, the appellate court held that Oyetola and his party, APC failed to prove their allegation of over voting before the election tribunal.

The court held that one cannot rely on the backend server alone to determine over voting without corresponding it with the data on the BVAS and voter register.

By the Judgment, the decision of the Osun State Governorship election tribunal of January 27, which held that Adegboyega Oyetola could prove that there was indeed overvoting in some of the polling units was thereby set aside.

Consequently, the Appellant court awarded N500,000 each against the INEC and All Progressive Congress (APC), 1st and 2nd respondents.

Recall that the Osun State governorship tribunal, in a majority judgement of two out of the three-member panel declared that the INEC should withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to Adeleke and issued same to former Governor Adegboyega Oyetola

The majority judgement which was read by the

Chairman, Justice Tertse Kume said Oyetola scored the majority lawful votes of 314,931 against Adeleke’s 290,266.

Miffed by the decision of the Tribunal, Adeleke headed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division seeking for redress.

The Appellant, through his counsel, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, prayed the court to set aside the decision of the tribunal for lacking in merit.

He insisted that the tribunal in its judgment erred in law in returning Oyetola as the duly elected candidate without due regard to the enormity of the voters in the units where the results were cancelled for over voting.

Arguing his brief, Ikpeazu maintained that the tribunal exhibited bias against the appellant with its reference to his dance at his inauguration as governor of Osun state.

According to the senior lawyer, his client’s dancing prowess was never an issue before the lower tribunal.

“By referring to the appellant’s personal eccentricity for dancing, the lower tribunal derided and mocked him in a manner suggesting that it was biased against him.

“The appearance of bias manifested in the reference to the Appellant’s proclivity for dancing and particularly the Buga song, has rendered the decision of the lower Tribunal a nullity.