newsnjobs:
At the end of the day he can still be the Governor if PDP strategies well for the coming election on Thursday.

Adeleke will be governor but he will be impeached over his certificate scandal

Johnnyessensse:
Go suck your mama pussy

Why the insult?

That's gross... You should not spew such things out of your scare-crow brain

Johnnyessensse:
Go suck your mama pussy

I fear lawyers like Ozekhome for their biased analysis due to their political affiliation.

Johnnyessensse:
We all know PDP bought votes massively in Osun

People like this will always make the advance world see Nigeria as a failed country.

NothingDoMe:
Why are you so upset? This Osun state election really shake una.

I’m upset because of the hypocrisy of PDP and its supporters.

#OsunDecides2018 supplementary election. If Only those already accredited on Saturday can vote.

Orolu
Accredited voters: 50

Ife North
Accredited voters: 76

Ife South
Accredited voters: 84

Osogbo
Accredited voters: 98

All Accredited: 308.
Current Margin: 353.

Diff: 45

So even if the accredited voters in the units cancelled all vote for APC on Thursday's re-run, PDP sill wins it.

Why waste resources!

Notwithstanding, we are not distracted, PDP will come out tops.

uniqueboi:
Adeleke satisfied the provision. In Osunbor v Oshiomhole (2007) 18 NWLR (part 1065) 32, cancelled votes had been counted and added to PDP/Osunbor’s scores.

“The courts, up to the Supreme Court, held that when votes are cancelled, they are not reckoned with in determining the outcome of such an election. The courts thereafter deducted the invalidated votes and this gave victory to Oshiomhole in the hotly contested election.”


Very good argument.

Sorry sir,in 2016 during the james faleke vs inec case in kogi guber poll,the supreme court laid it to rest by affirming that inec had the rights to declare any elections inconclusive going by its internal rules and guidelines.
NEC HAS THE POWER TO DECLARE AN ELECTION INCONCLUSIVE.

Will make this as brief as I can while ensuring facts are not traded in exchange.


What's the actual position of the law?

Pursuant to pages 22 – 23, Paragraph 4, Section N 2015 INEC Guidelines issued pursuant to Section 153 of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended), INEC is empowered to declare election inconclusive where the margin of victory is less than the number of registered voters in cancelled Polling Units.

This power of INEC to declare an election inconclusive under the above provision has been upheld by the Supreme court in the case of Hon James Abiodun Faleke v Independent National Electoral Commission & Anor with the appeal no: SC. 648/2016 delivered in September 2016.

One of the issues for determination was whether the court below was right when it held that the 1st respondent acted correctly in applying the guidelines in the Manual for Electoral Officers (updated version) to resolve the conundrum that had arisen on the 21st of November 2015 and in holding that the announcement of the election as inconclusive is not contrary to Sections 179(2) and 181(1) of the 1999 Constitution.

The supreme held to wit:

“The Constitution in Section 153(1)(f) & (i) provides for the establishment of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which, pursuant to paragraph 15 of Part 1 of the Third Schedule thereto, has power inter alia to “(a) organize, undertake and supervise all elections to the offices of the President and Vice President, the Governor and Deputy Governor of a State and the membership of the Senate, the House of Representatives and the House- of Assembly of each State of the Federation; and(i) to carry out such other functions as be conferred upon it by an Act of the National Assembly.” Pursuant to Section 160(1) of the Constitution, INEC has the power, by rules or otherwise to regulate its own procedure or confer powers and impose duties on any officer or authority for the purpose of discharging its function.” PER K. M.O.KEKERE-EKUN, J.S.C

Flowing from the above decision of the supreme court, it is very crystal clear INEC is empowered to declare an election inconclusive pursuant to the relevant provisions of the INEC guidelines. The exercise of this power was seen in both Kogi Gubernatorial election and that of Imo State gubernatorial election where INEC declared the elections inconclusive. Note that APC in both states were winning and had infact won before INEC declared it inconclusive for the same margin reasons. Imo election was conducted during the administration of PDP(Good luck Jonathan) while Kogi was conducted after APC won the presidential election and had taken over lower.

For Saraki, a seasoned law maker, Senate president and presidential aspirant to have said INEC had no such power leaves much to be desired and it tells a lot about the dubious and ignorant nature of Saraki.

E. Paul
Source: https://www.nairaland.com/4751204/inec-power-declare-election-inconclusive

Voting start now...

Those in support of PDP Adeleke Like

Those in support of APC share

Waoooooo, Like deserve it.

Say no to any form of rigging

Awol1:
What is stopping PDP from going to court?

Because I'm not seeing this rerun in favour of PDP o

Court, I don't understand. Is like you don't know the rules of election.

Benosky011:
#OsunDecides2018 supplementary election. If Only those already accredited on Saturday can vote.

Orolu
Accredited voters: 50

Ife North
Accredited voters: 76

Ife South
Accredited voters: 84

Osogbo
Accredited voters: 98

All Accredited: 308.
Current Margin: 353.

Diff: 45

So even if the accredited voters in the units cancelled all vote for APC on Thursday's re-run, PDP sill wins it.

Why waste resources!

Notwithstanding, we are not distracted, PDP will come out tops.

What about this?
Orolu lga accredited voters 500 apc 250 pdp 250
Ife north accredited voters 400 apc 300 pdp 100
Ife south accredited voters 500 apc 300 pdp 200
Osogbo accredited voters 500 apc 300 pdp 200

PassingShot:
Idiot. But when elections were declared in the past where APC was winning, these goats applauded INEC.

but APC came to right the wrong

Johnnyessensse:
We all know PDP bought votes massively in Osun

This is not question of buying vote. Both PDP and APC are useless party with selfish interest.
But the people voted pdp because they don't have option.Aregbesola is really a wicked man, how can you owe salary for 3 years and he was collecting salary oo.

This is the problem with the blackman, we view the world through emotional and sentimental prism, instead of using our moral and logical compass.

Even though I am not a lawyer, I see nothing unconstitutional or immoral in what INEC has done.

First they are following the electoral guild lines enacted by both PDP and APC legislators.

Secondly, is Ozekhome saying some people should be disenfranchised for no fault of theirs. If he says people that came to vote but could not vote due to no fault of theirs - maybe due to the INEC officers fault or security challenge, should not be allowed to vote again.

The problem here is that the margin is so close that the cancelled wards would make a difference in who becomes governor. If Adeleke had won with over 5,000 votes, then a rerun would have been unnecessary, but the difference was less than 500, meanwhile about 3000 voters were not allowed to vote.
What is wrong in asking those 3000 voters to come and vote. If no one rigs in the rerun elections, I do not see what the problem is.

What Ozekome is saying is that all a partisan INEC has to do to ensure its candidate win the election is to cancel wards and local government areas where the opponent is winning or likely to win and disenfranchise their voters.

Since there are very few wards, it should be easier to monitor and ensure there is no foul play.

but okorocha shouldn't had been declared in 2015 abi? mumu

eneyoduke:
Voting start now...

Those in support of PDP Adeleke Like

Those in support of APC share

Waoooooo, Like deserve it.

Say no to any form of rigging

You this efik man,why not think of voting out failed governor ayade first before thinking of osun matters

Legal labyrinth awaits APC if it subverts people's will.

My brain is temporarily out of service.
I apologize for any inconvenience. Pls I hope to comment later

Thank you.

Legolast:


Court, I don't understand. Is like you don't know the rules of election.

Tell me.

You want to say it's not judicable because the election is not concluded?

APC and INEC are fraudulent. They did not use any authourity to back up their action.
But election took place in the affected arears and the result was cancel then why the rerun?

This attitude can be liken to a situation whereby a student is caught cheating during exam, you officially collect the exhibit and you ask him to sit for the exam again.
What is the ethics and morlity of this action?

ukpono10:
The Proposed Rerun Election in Osun State and the
Law
Preamble
It is now official that INEC has taken a decision to
conduct a rerun election in some polling units in
Osun State before declaring the 2018 Gubernatorial
Election conclusive. From the press release signed
by Solomon Soyebi, National Commissioner and
Chairman, Information and Voter Education
Committee of INEC, the reason for the decision is
given as follows: ”Based on the result by the
Returning Officer, the margin between the two
leading candidates is 353 which is lower than the
number of registered voters in the affected areas.
Extant law and INEC Guidelines and Regulations
provide that where such a situation occurs, a
declaration may not be made.” (See page 2,
paragraph 2 of INEC’s letter of Sunday 23rd
September, 2018).
It is important to note that the said letter has not
cited any section or provision of the ‘extant law and
INEC Guidelines and Regulations’ to enable readers
be on the same page with the Commission on the
issue. However, in announcing the decision to
declare the election inconclusive, Prof. Joseph
Adeola Fuwape, Returning Officer and Vice
Chancellor of the Federal University of Technology,
Akure was more specific when he said that the
decision is made pursuant to INEC’s Guidelines for
Election. He said that according to the Guidelines,
where the margin of victory at an election is less
than the number of votes cancelled in the same
election, a rerun must be conducted in the affected
polling units to determine the actual winner of the
election. The Professor did not also mention the
exact section of the Guidelines but, his submission
is clear and we can work with it for purpose of legal
exposition on the issue at hand.
What Does the Constitution say on When A
Candidate is Deemed to Have been Duly Elected?
Election into any public office in Nigeria is an issue
of law and the most superior law in the Federal
Republic of Nigeria today is the 1999 Constitution.
Section 179 (2) provides what is required to declare
a person winner in a gubernatorial election. It
provides thus:
”179(2) A candidate for an election to the office of
Governor of a State shall be deemedto have been
duly elected where, there being two or more
candidates –
(a) he has the highest number of votes castat the
election; and
(b) he has not less than one-quarter of all the votes
cast in each of at least two-thirds of all the Local
Government Area in the State.”
What the law contemplates here is simple majority
of votes cast. That means, even a hundred votes or
less will be sufficient for one to emerge as winner of
a gubernatorial election.
The Legal Question
The legal question here is, has the Governorship
candidate of the PDP met the above conditions of
the law? INEC has affirmed that after a thorough
counting of the votes cast, the result shows that
while the APC Candidate polled 254,345 votes, the
PDP Candidate polled 254,698 votes leaving a
difference or victory margin of 353 votes. By this
confirmation Adeleke of the PDP has won that
election with 353 votes. He has also won in not less
than two-thirds majority of all the 30 Local
Government Areas of the State.
Going by the provision of section 179(2) of the 1999
Constitution, Adeleke of the PDP has emerged the
winner of the 2018 Gubernatorial Election conducted
in Osun State.
There is nothing in that section to accommodate the
excuse given by INEC.
But the Constitution Recognizes a Rerun in the
following Circumstances
By section 179(3) of the same Constitution, a rerun
only becomes necessary where there is no
candidate with the highest number of votes in the
election. For instance if the candidate of the APC
and that of the PDP had equal number of votes, the
Constitution allows INEC to conduct a rerun within 7
days from the announcement of the result. Also,
where the candidate with the highest number of
votes does not have at least one-quarter of all the
votes cast in each of at least two-thirds of all the
LGAs in the State, a rerun becomes inevitable.
These are not the reasons given by INEC for the
proposed rerun election. The implication of this is
that the reasons given by INEC are not within the
contemplation of the Constitution.
When the Provisions of a Guideline is in Conflict
with the Provisions of the Constitution, what
Happens
Clearly, the provision of the INEC Guidelines and
Regulation which says that where the margin of
victory at an election is less than the number of
votes cancelled in the same election, a rerun must
be conducted in the affected polling units to
determine the eventual winner of the election, is in
conflict with the provisions of section 179(2) of the
1999 Constitution on when a candidate is deemed to
have emerged the winner in a gubernatorial
election. The Constitution does not have any such
provision or reason as given by INEC.
By section 1(1) of the Constitution it is provided as
follows: ”This Constitution is supreme and its
provisions shall have binding force on all authorities
and persons throughout the Federal Republic of
Nigeria”INEC is included in the phrase ”all
authorities and persons’‘. By section 1(3) it is
provided thus: ”If any other law is inconsistent with
the provision of this Constitution, this Constitution
shall prevail, and that other law shall, to the extent
of its inconsistency be void.”
By the above section on supremacy of the
Constitution, the provision of the INEC Guidelines
under review is null and void and have no effect
whatsoever having conflicted with the clear
provisions of section 179(2) of the Constitution.
Does the Law Have Any Business with Cancelled
Votes?
The law has no business with cancelled votes.
Once declared ‘cancelled’, such votes have no
further business in the electoral process and
cannot form the basis for the nullification of the
majority of lawful votes cast to warrant a rerun.
They ought not to form part of the counting process
and should not in any way influence the outcome of
the election. In the celebrated case of Adams
Oshiomole v. Prof. Osunbor, cancelled votes were
added to the scores of the Peoples’ Democratic
Party which saw to the emergence of Prof. Osunbor
as the Governor of Edo State. Adams Oshiomole
challenged the action in court and it was held that
cancelled votes had no role to play in the election
and should not have been counted for Prof. Osunbor
or any party whatsoever. The court then deducted
the votes and Adams Oshimole was declared the
winner.
When the cancelled votes in Osun are deducted
from the total number of valid votes cast, Adeleke
has, by operation of law, emerged the winner of the
election in issue.
What INEC Should Do in the Circumstance
INEC should rescind its decision on the rerun and
declare Adeleke the winner of the Osun State
Election in view of the fact that the reason given by
the Commission is not in sync with the provisions of
the Constitution. INEC should pay attention to the
language of the Constitution which provides that a
candidate for an election to the office of Governor of
a State shall be deemed to have been duly elected
…. By this phrase, a legal event has already
occurred; the Constitution has already deemed
Adeleke winner of the election. INEC has no further
say on this than to do the needful and call off the
proposed rerun.
Ekemini Udim is a lawyer and public affairs analyst.
ekeminiudimforjustice@gmail.com

Am not a lawyer and I strongly believe all what you said are right. But this is not the first time this same issue of inconclusive and rerun is happening. I strongly believe if Adeleke should go on and fulfil the rerun election by approaching a court he will fail. This not the first time we are having inconclusive in governorship elections. He should come out and do his grassroots movement and forget at the issue of technicalities because it won't favour him.

senatordave1:

What about this?
Orolu lga accredited voters 500 apc 250 pdp 250
Ife north accredited voters 400 apc 300 pdp 100
Ife south accredited voters 500 apc 300 pdp 200
Osogbo accredited voters 500 apc 300 pdp 200

APC cannot win in Ife as far as Omisore is concerned

mamotalk:
APC and INEC are fraudulent. They did not use any authourity to back up their action.
But election took place in the affected arears and the result was cancel then why the rerun?

This attitude can be liken to a situation whereby a student is caught cheating during exam, you officially collect the exhibit and you ask him to sit for the exam again.
What is the ethics and morlity of this action?

You did not get your facts right. Elections was cancelled in 2 wards because the card reader did not work, and the electoral act stipulate the use of card readers.
In another ward there was violence, so the voters could not vote.

So you see, it was not the fault of the voters or the parties that the elections were cancelled in those wards.

PDP lawyer - wait for them.They ll hire you to defend this case in court.We know whom you are.mumu lawyer

My brother don't bother yourself, Ozekhome is a PDP man.

Meanwhile both APC and PDP are demonic and useless.

I am just laughing here seeing how some nairalanders are arguing, fighting and cursing themselves over
these blood sucking political parties.

They are carrying PDP and APC matter for head as if it is Man-U and Chelsea fans.

Nairaland folks get this into your heads, GEJ, PMB, OBJ, Tinubu, Atiku, Saraki e.t.c don't care about you but their families
and business interests.

wirinet:
This is the problem with the blackman, we view the world through emotional and sentimental prism, instead of using our moral and logical compass.

Even though I am not a lawyer, I see nothing unconstitutional or immoral in what INEC has done.

First they are following the electoral guild lines enacted by both PDP and APC legislators.

Secondly, is Ozekhome saying some people should be disenfranchised for no fault of theirs. If he says people that came to vote but could not vote due to no fault of theirs - maybe due to the INEC officers fault or security challenge, should not be allowed to vote again.

The problem here is that the margin is so close that the cancelled wards would make a difference in who becomes governor. If Adeleke had won with over 5,000 votes, then a rerun would have been unnecessary, but the difference was less than 500, meanwhile about 3000 voters were not allowed to vote.
What is wrong in asking those 3000 voters to come and vote. If no one rigs in the rerun elections, I do not see what the problem is.

What Ozekome is saying is that all a partisan INEC has to do to ensure its candidate win the election is to cancel wards and local government areas where the opponent is winning or likely to win and disenfranchise their voters.

Since there are very few wards, it should be easier to monitor and ensure there is no foul play.

PassingShot:

I’m upset because of the hypocrisy of PDP and its supporters.

Nor vex.

Where is the almighty legal luminary FEMI FALANA?

I like this Edo born lawyer. He's just waiting for the election to be announce in favour of APC so that he will stand as Adeleke's council to make some millions.