Ogun Guber: Court Affirms Nomination of Adebutu as PDP Candidate

Alex Enumah in Abuja

Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court yesterday affirmed the nomination of Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu as the lawful candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in next year’s governorship election in Ogun State.

Justice Ekwo in affirming the nomination of Adebutu by his party held that the plaintiff, Mr. Jimi Lawal failed to prove that the PDP breached its own laws in the selection of its standard bearer for the March 11, 2023 governorship poll.

According to the judge, Lawal failed to provide reliable and credible evidence to support his case of alleged electoral malpractice.
Justice Ekwo accordingly dismissed the suit for being incompetent and lacking in merit.

Lawal had dragged the PDP to court over the emergence of Adebutu as candidate of the party in the March 11, governorship election in Ogun State.
His suit filed in June this year was turned down by Justice Taiwo Taiwo (Rtd) on grounds that he lacked jurisdiction to dabble into the internal affairs of political parties, claiming that the choice of flag bearer was for a political party to make.

However, following his appeal, the judgment of Taiwo was set aside and the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court was ordered to reassign the suit for fresh hearing by another judge.

The Supreme Court in a judgment last month, while affirming the judgment of the appellate court had ordered that the case be given expeditious hearing since the 180 days allowed in law for pre-election matters would soon lapse.
The case was later reassigned to Justice Ekwo who heard the matter last week and fixed December 1, for judgment after observing that the suit would lapse on December 2.

Delivering judgment yesterday, the court held that Lawal failed to establish, with credible evidence, his claim that the register/list of voting delegates used during the governorship primary election was marked ‘statutory delegates’ and contained names of political appointees and persons against that of the ad-hoc delegates, who were democratically elected at the ward congress of the first defendant, for the purpose of the governorship primaries.
The judge also held that Lawal, who scored zero votes in the primary election, was only playing the role of a spoiler having defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) shortly before the primary election.

Justice Ekwo said: “I have considered the whole gamut of the case of the plaintiff, I have not seen where the plaintiff has established, with any concrete documentary evidence, that the register/list of the democratically elected ad-hoc delegates certified by the second defendant, was not used during the first defendant’s Ogun State governorship primary election conducted on May 25, 2022.

“It is my finding that the plaintiff is merely playing the role of a spoiler in the affairs of the first defendant.
“He has not controverted that averment of the first and third defendants (PDP and Adebutu) that he recently decamped to the first defendant from the APC sometime in March 2022.

“Assuming there was such an infraction, as alleged by the plaintiff in this case, the plaintiff ought to have protested to the first and second defendants (PDP and INEC) as soon as he witnessed the infraction alleged by him in this case.

“I am certain that the report of the second defendant would have reflected the objection or protest of the plaintiff. I do not see the second defendant conniving with the first defendant to cover up the allegation of the plaintiff by issuing a report and not reflecting same.
“This is a primary election in which the third defendant had the highest number of votes cast at the end of voting and was accordingly declared the winner with a total of 714 votes while the plaintiff scored zero votes.

“It not the business of the court to overrule the choice of a candidate of a political party after such candidate has been democratically nominated by the delegates who were elected for the purpose.
“It is the law that contents of pleadings such as the averments that make up the case of the plaintiff must be proved, and must be on preponderance of evidence and balance of probabilities.

“Upon reviewing the evidence in this case, I find that the plaintiff has failed to discharge the onus of proof in this case and upon not being satisfied with reliable and credible evidence, the case of the plaintiff is bound to fail.
“From the state of evidence in this case, I have no reason to say that the primary election of the first defendant held on May 25, 2022 was invalid, null and void ab initio.

“I can only see this action from one irrefutable prism, that is, it is a product of an afterthought and ought to be treated as such. I find that the plaintiff’s case fails for lack of credible evidence and I so hold. I make an order dismissing this case,” the judge said.