Ogun 2023: Tribunal Strikes Out Adebutu’s Reply on Vote Buying Allegation

James Sowole in Abeokuta

The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abeokuta,  Ogun State on  complaints emanating from the March 18, 2023 governorship election in Ogun  State, yesterday, struck out the reply of the gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Hon. Ladipupo Adebutu, to vote buying allegation levelled against him by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate. Dapo Abiodun.

Abiodun had in his response to the petition filed against him (Abiodun) by Adebutu, alleged that the PDP candidate, engaged in vote buying  by producing  200,000 credit cards to the tune of N2bn and of N10,000 each to induce voters during the gubernatorial election.

However, Adebutu in a motion, moved by one of his counsel, Goddy Uche SAN, said Abiodun, also engaged in vote buying, thus the tribunal should strike out Abiodun’s allegation of vote buying against his client.

Uche insisted that Abiodun who is the second respondent, should not be responding amiss, adding that the case of vote buying was not initially in the petition before the tribunal.

He added that he was compelled to also reply that the APC was the one responsible for vote buying.

In his argument, Osipitan said it was wrong for Adebutu, to level vote buying allegation against Abiodun at that stage arguing that it amounted to expansion of petition and should not be entertained.

Osipitan, from the point of law, contested Uche’s position, saying the PDP and its candidate, cannot input any further allegation into the petition, asking the court to stop any of such attempt “as it will amount to an expansion of the PDP petition.

A police investigation replying on an APC petition,  had earlier indicted Adebutu of alleged vote buying with the sum of N2 billion naira through an ATM card preloaded with N10,000 each and on which Adebutu, a money deposit bank and some other persons, had been charged to Federal High Court, Abeokuta in a suit filed by the Federal Government.

In its ruling, the three-man  tribunal, headed by Justice Hamidu Kunaza, struck out the response of Adebutu’ to the allegation of vote buying by Abiodun, and held that a reply should not be a medium to raise new issue which was not raised in the petition.

“The petitioner’s reply dated May 22, 2023 is hereby struck out,” the tribunal held.

The Chairman, who was supported by Justices J B Egele and Sanussi Shehu,  said it was not proper for the petitioner to have brought the issue of vote buying at this time, saying if the petitioners, had facts on the vote buying allegation, they ought to have included it in the original petition.

Tribunal held that the petitioner’s reply if allowed would constitute injustice as the second respondent didn’t have opportunity to respond to the petitioner’s reply.

However, the Chairman emphasised that the ruling didn’t affect the merit of the petition as petition itself would be determined during the hearing stage which would soon commence.

He  adjourned the sitting to June 22, 2023, for another ruling.