Osun Election: INEC Urges Tribunal To Dismiss Oyetola’s Petition

The Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal has been asked to dismiss the petition of Ex-governor Adegboyega Oyetola challenging the victory of Ademola Adeleke during July 16th 2022 election.

Counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), Professor Paul Ananaba, SAN has urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition.

The sitting was previously adjourned till Friday, 13th January 2023 for adoption of final written addresses by the petitioners (All Progressives Congress,APC and Oyetola) and the respondents(INEC,Adeleke and Peoples Democratic Party,PDP).

Ananaba, while tendering his final written summon, explained that the court should discontinance the Certified True Copy of Bimodal Voters Accreditation System report issued to Oyetola because it did not represent true record of the election.

He said that “the exhibit BVR tendered by the petitioners clearly showed that there were infractions in 1750 polling units but only cherry pick 749 polling units to lure the tribunal to accept their pleadings. The petitioners made heavy weather about exhibit BVR… Which is dated 27 July, 2022, a report of accreditation for the entire units in the state, 3,763 polling units.

“In our reply to the petition, and as adopted by RW1, that there were infractions according to the BVR, in 1,750 units. So what they did was to pick 749 polling units to get what they wanted. And if you want to rely only on exhibit BVR, and If you deduct the 1,750 units that affected both parties from the 3,763 units, the second respondent will still win overwhelmingly with over 20,000 votes.”

Similarly, counsel to Ademola Adeleke, Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition on the ground that it failed to prove beyond reasonable doubts issues of forgery before the tribunal, saying the petitioners have failed to call any witness or tender evidence to that effect.

Meanwhile, Oyetola’s counsel, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, held that petitioners have established over-voting in 744 polling units and based on the prepared table of analysis.

He prayed the court to sack Adeleke as Governor of Osun State and also declare Oyetola as duly elected.

He explained that since there is no other incontrovertible evidence before the tribunal, the panel should give exhibit BVR which was not challenged by the respondent probative value and uphold the pleas of the petitioner.

On the issue of qualification, Akin Olujinmi, SAN, opined that the document tendered by the petitioners have proven enough that they were forged/false and no other document nor witness called to impugned its integrity.

The chairman of the panel, Justice Tertse Kume, admitted the written addresses of the counsel and said the judgement date to the parties involved. The court rise at 7:58 PM.