The Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal overturned the outcomes of the governorship election held on July 16, 2022, and Gboyega Oyetola was pronounced the victor.
The tribunal overturned the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Friday in Osogbo declaration of the election’s winner, Mr. Adeleke of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
The panel instructed INEC to revoke the certificates of return that had been given to Mr. Adeleke and Kola Adewusi, his deputy, both of whom had taken the oath of office.
The All Progressives Congress’ Mr. Oyetola should be given the certificate of return, according to the panel led by Justice Terste Kume (APC).
According to Mr. Kume, the governorship election was not conducted in accordance with the Nigerian Electoral Act.
The panel determined that there was excessive voting in the governorship race. According to the report, Mr. Adeleke’s vote total dropped to 290,666 after the excessive votes were subtracted, which was less than Mr. Oyetola’s vote total of 314,921.
As a result, the panel ruled that Mr. Oyetola be reinstated as governor of Osun State.
With a total of 403,371 votes, Mr. Adeleke was declared the victor. In 17 of the state’s 30 Local Government Areas (LGAs), he won.
With 375,027 votes, Mr. Oyetola of the APC prevailed in the remaining 13 LGAs.
The governorship election featured fifteen contestants, but Mr. Adeleke and Mr. Oyetola engaged in a fierce rivalry.
Mr. Oyetola, the state’s most recent governor, alleged in his petition that there were 749 polling places where there were too many votes cast.
Additionally, he claimed that Mr. Adeleke presented false academic qualifications to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in order to run for office.
Mr. Adeleke has said that he will challenge the tribunal’s decision. As a result, he will continue to serve in that capacity until the superior courts have made a definitive decision in the case.
A few weeks after the governorship election, in August 2022, the tribunal first met.
With Lateef Fagbemi and Akin Olujimi serving as their primary attorneys, Mr. Oyetola and the APC are the petitioners in the lawsuit.
The first defendant is INEC, the second defendant is Mr. Adeleke, and the third defendant is PDP.
Paul Ananaba, Alex Iziyon, and Onyechi Ikpeazu are the attorneys for INEC, the PDP, and Mr. Adeleke, respectively. Senior attorneys serve as all of the counsel.
Minority opinion
Justice P. A. Ogbuli, the second tribunal member, dissented with the panel’s stance in a minority ruling.
According to Mr. Ogbuli, the petitioners were unable to demonstrate that there were excessive votes cast in the governorship race.
He declared that he was not persuaded by the petitioners’ witnesses’ testimony before the panel.
To prove that there were over-votings, according to Mr. Ogbuli, the petitioners should have presented the whole list of registered voters in court.
In light of this, he rejected the petitioner’s claims against Mr. Adeleke, the PDP, and INEC.
The third panelist, however, declared that she agreed with the majority’s conclusion.
Adeleke goes to court
Nathaniel Oke, Mr. Adeleke’s attorney, revealed that his clients want to appeal the decision.
Mr. Oke voiced his disagreement with the majority’s conclusion.
“The decision has been made, invalidating the election that was held on July 16, 2022. The reality is that we are disappointed, and because we have the requisite legal support to challenge that ruling, we will do so,” he said.
“The minority judgment may not always reflect the court’s decision, but we completely concur with the conclusion reached by the minority judgment. But as you may recall, there were only two judges who rendered a decision in this case.
Paul Ananaba, the INEC’s legal representative, also voiced his disagreement with the ruling by the majority.
Mr. Ananaba, who asked state people to maintain calm, also suggested that the election commission will appeal the ruling.
“The head of the tribunal, one of the judges, gives what, in my opinion, is the majority ruling. The panel’s second member made a dissenting decision. The third participant thanked everyone but made no pronouncements. We will need to investigate these issues and provide our findings to the commission so that they can make the best choice possible.
“However, everyone who listens to the ruling will see the industry and the legal stance on BVAS, which is the main issue. And there is the minority view, according to which the main source of what happened on election day was BVAS. In our opinion, that is the correct legal position, as stated by the minority judgment, he continued.
“The people of Osun should maintain their composure; the constitution specifies what must be done. I think the court of appeals has a responsibility.
