Osun Governorship Election: Supreme Court to Hear Adeleke’s Appeal Today

Osun Governorship Election: Supreme Court to Hear Adeleke’s Appeal Today

Davidson Iriekpen

The Supreme Court has fixed today to hear the appeal filed by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 2018 governorship election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke.

Adeleke by the appeal, is seeking the reversal of the May 9, 2019 majority judgment of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which upheld the election of Adegboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the governor of the state.

The notice for the hearing date was contained in the notices sent to parties last week by the Registry of the Supreme Court, sighted in Abuja.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Oyetola winner at the conclusion of the September 27, 2018, supplementary election, held after the inconclusive September 22, 2018 main election.

Adeleke and the PDP challenged the outcome of the election at the election tribunal, which sat in Abuja owing to fear of insecurity in Osun State.

On March 22, 2019, the three-man election tribunal gave a split decision of two-to-one in favour of the petitioners – Adeleke and the PDP.

Justices Peter Obiorah and Adegboye Gbolagunte, in the majority decision, upheld the petition, voided Oyetola’s victory and declared Adeleke of the PDP winner of the governorship election.

Justice Ibrahim Sirajo, who chaired the tribunal, gave a minority judgment, in which he dissented and struck out the petition because the petitioners did not prove their case.

Oyetola, APC and INEC appealed the majority judgment at the Court of Appeal, Abuja, while Adeleke and the PDP appealed the minority decision.

On May 9, 2019, the Court of Appeal gave its decisions on the appeals, with four members of the five-man panel, upholding the appeals by Oyetola, APC and INEC, and dismissing the cross-appeal by Adeleke and the PDP.

The Court of Appeal’s majority judgment set aside the majority judgment of the election tribunal, upheld the result as declared by INEC and affirmed Oyetola of the APC as winner of the election.

Justices Jummai Sankey, Abubakar Yahaya, Isaiah Akeju and Bitrus Sanga gave the majority decision, while Justice George Mbaba gave the minority judgment, in which he dismissed the appeals and upheld the cross-appeal.

The appeal to be heard by the Supreme Court today is the one filed by Adeleke against the majority decisions of the Court of Appeal.

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