UPDATED: Tribunal Sacks Adeleke As Osun Governor

– As INEC Ordered To Issue Oyetola With Certificate Of Return

Senator Ademola Adeleke has been sacked as the Governor of Osun State by the state’s Election Petition Tribunal due to overvoting.

The tribunal also declared Adegboyega Oyetola as the winner of the July 16th, 2022 election.

The majority judgment of two judges which includes the Chairman of the panel, Justice Tertse Kume, ordered that a Certificate of Return should be withdrawn from Adeleke and presented to Oyetola.

Meanwhile, a minority judgment upheld the election in favour of Ademola Adeleke.

The former Governor of Osun, Adegboyega Oyetola and All Progressives Congress(APC), in their petition, had claimed that there was over-voting in 749 polling units in the state.

They also challenged the eligibility of Senator Adeleke to contest the election over alleged certificate forgery.

The chairman of the panel, Justice Tertse Kume who delivered the majority judgment in company of Justice Rabi Bashir, cleared Adeleke on allegations related to certificate but admitted that there was over-voting in 744 polling units.

In his lead judgement, Justice Kume said the petitioners proved their allegation of over-voting beyond reasonable doubt, hence the court’s decision to deduct the invalid votes from the lawful votes cast at the election.

After the deduction, the tribunal declared that Oyetola of the APC scored 314,931 votes, while Adeleke was left with 290,266 votes.

The panel directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Adeleke and recognize Oyetola as the validly elected Governor of the state.

The chairman said report of the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) issued to the Petitioners clearly showed that there was over-voting in the result declared by the INEC.

According to the panel, none of the witnesses of the respondents disputed the evidence of the petitioners as regards over voting on the BVAs report, just as the INEC did not withdraw the BVAS report issued to the Petitioners.

The panel further ruled that the arguments of the respondents that the BVAS reports issued to the petitioners was “unsynchronized and inchoate” was misconceived, as such claims were not shown in the report.

On the respondents’ argument that the Petitioners did not call any oral evidence to prove the alleged over voting, the tribunal held that fact admitted needed no proof, as the respondents’ witnesses have admitted over-voting in the result declared by the commission based on the purported syncronished BVAS report issued to the respondents.

He held that the evidence before the panel was that the election was held in substantial non-compliance with the provision of the law, through manipulation of BVAS.

According to him, the petitioners does not need to tender the voters register to prove accreditation, saying what Section 51(2) of the Electoral Act provide is that, for the purpose of accreditation only the BVAS machine would be used.

The Tribunal further noted that the electoral act provides that where there is over voting, the result for the said unit should be cancelled, adding that “it is the duty of the tribunal to deduct invalid votes from lawful votes”.

The chairman then recommended that to forestall manipulation of BVAS machine in the conduct of subsequent elections, the INEC server should be linked to the Nigeria Police server and linked with National Security Adviser for transparency, saying any of the report emanating from these sources can be subjected to investigation.

The tribunal averred that despite the declaration of the INEC to conduct a free and fair election, the conduct of its officer contradicted the claim.

In its decision on the qualification of Adeleke to contest the election over forgery of certificate, the panel ruled that though it was established that the Secondary School Certificate of Ede Muslim Grammar School was forged, it was not enough to disqualify him, as he had other certificates he presented.

Meanwhile, in a minority judgement, a member of the panel, Justice Benedict Amangbe Ogbuli, said the petitioners could not have proven over-voting by BVAS report alone, saying, the voters’ register is also required to prove over-voting for the affected units and as such should also have been tendered and put into consideration.

He said, the petitioner failed to prove the allegation of over-voting and subsequently dismiss the petition.

According to him, “It is remarkable to note that the petitioners did not controvert the exhibit RBVR series and the report of physical inspection, that exhibit RWC, they stand unchallenged and I so hold.

“Exhibit RWC is a document made from the time resources which are the machines used on the Election Day. The exhibit on RWC are in existence and were there on the machine date of election. Section 64 sub 4,5 and 6 of the electoral act recognized BVAS machines itself as a key material to be used in collation of result and in resolution of any dispute arising therefrom.

“The petitioners are not saying that the entries on exhibit RBVM series which is the machine itself are not same as the entries in exhibit RWC, their grouse is that since exhibit RWC came from the same first respondent it will be not be allowed to stand in view of the discrepancies of figures in them via-a-vis the entries.

“In view of the following I hold that exhibit BVR is a product of inadequacies and cannot be the best evidence for the determination of the accurate number of accredited voters on 16th July 2022 election. The same is true of exhibit RBVR, the best evidence to that regard is RBVL, 1-119 down to RBVL 1-59 used in the polling units under contest and I so hold. Voters register can’t be ruled out.”