On Friday, the destiny of Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke will be decided by the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja.
Governor Adeleke and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had petitioned the appellate court to overturn the verdict of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had removed him from office.
Remember that on January 27, a three-member panel tribunal led by Judge Tertsea Kume overturned Adeleke’s proclamation as the winner of the state’s governorship race on a two-to-one vote.
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The petition, submitted by Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a former governor of the state, was upheld by the majority.
According to the majority opinion, Adeleke did not receive the majority of legitimate votes, and the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the terms of the Election Act, 2022.
The tribunal decided that Oyetola and the APC had effectively established overvoting in 744 polling units across the state.
After deducting the alleged illegitimate votes, the tribunal ruled Oyetola the winner of the governorship election and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to revoke Adeleke’s Certificate of Return.
Nevertheless, in his dissenting opinion, the third member of the panel, Judge P. Agbuli, affirmed Adeleke as the legitimate winner of the election while dismissing the challenge filed by Oyetola and the APC.
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Meanwhile, governor Adeleke appealed the majority ruling that removed him from office to the Court of Appeal.
Adeleke argued in his 31 grounds of appeal that the verdict was void, pointing out that the second member of the panel, Judge Rabi Bashir, failed to offer her view on the petition, either orally or in writing, but instead simply signed the judgement.
“The second member of the lower Tribunal could not have validly signed the decision of the chairman of the lower Tribunal without an opinion.”
Adeleke, through his legal team lead by Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, also claimed that the tribunal made its decision without taking into account all of the facts presented to it.
When the panel left the substance of the case and made reference to his dance ability, the embattled Osun state governor accused the panel of prejudice.
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He stated that the majority decision of the tribunal concluded that he could not “go lo lo lo lo lo” and “buga won” as the duly elected governor of Osun state.
Adeleke argued, “The tribunal, in its judgment, erred in law and displayed bias against the Appellant when it referred to the Appellant’s dance at his inauguration as governor of Osun state which 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 manifests 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.”
Furthermore, he said that the reports of entries on the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, equipment utilized for accreditation during the election were superior and unique.
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He told the appellate court that the physical examination of the BVAS established a case of over-voting in only six polling locations in the state, not 744, as the tribunal claimed.
As a result, Adeleke asked the court to uphold the minority decision of the tribunal that dismissed the case filed against his election victory.
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