₦airaland Forum

Former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has described the judgment of the Election Petition Tribunal last Friday, which nullified the election of Governor Gboyega Oyetola as very strange and unknown to law.

Aregbesola, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Mr. Sola Fasure, said the report of the split judgment came to every watcher of political events in the state as a rude shock.

In the statement entitled: “This judgment cannot stand,” the former governor said the people of the state and the government have the highest regards for the judiciary and would keep having high regards for the revered institution.


Aregbesola, however, regretted that the tribunal’s majority judgment was strange to law and common sense.

He said the majority judgment, as delivered by their Lordship, did not support the cause of electoral justice and might constitute the death knell for properly conducted elections.

Aregbesola said the people rejected the majority judgment and believe that it would not stand scrutiny at the appellate court.

The statement noted that the majority judgment, which held that the rerun election conducted in seven polling units on the September 27, 2018, was illegal, null and void, was equally shocking and amounts to a travesty of justice.

He said the government would appeal the judgment, adding that the verdict would be upturned.

The former governor wondered why elections in 17 polling would be annulled when there was no evidence of any act known to render them null and void in an election petition such as over-voting, non-accreditation, ballot box stuffing among others.

Aregbesola contended that concern for substantive justice should have dictated that since the results from the 17 units were duly signed and adjudged by INEC to be authentic, there should not have been any controversy over there validity.

He lamented that the tribunal has effectively disenfranchised the legitimate voters in the 17 polling units and rendered the election undemocratic.

The statement said: “In nullifying the elections in the 17 polling units, the majority judgment predicated it on what is regarded as ‘substantial non-compliance’ with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010. The said non-compliance, according to the judgment, borders on the failure of INEC’s appointed presiding officers to record accreditation and ballot accounting on the result forms in the 17 polling units.

“There was no evidence of any act known to render election null and void in an election petition such as over voting, non-accreditation, ballot box stuffing etc.

“This much was highlighted in the dissenting judgment of the Chairman of the Tribunal in disagreeing with the majority decision.

“It must be noted that APC and its candidate were not accused of any electoral malfeasance in the 17 polling units. Rather, INEC, a common agent of PDP and APC (and indeed, all the political parties), which neither of the parties has control over was merely accused of not complying with its manual for the election, when the presiding officers appointed for the election failed to make the entries.

“Therefore, the most relevant question one would pose here is: should the tribunal allow APC to suffer as a result of the mistakes or omissions occasioned by the INEC staff? Certainly, no!”

The statement added: “Equally shocking are the reasons advanced by the two justices. They advanced the proposition that elections in the seven polling units were cancelled by the state collation officer. This was not the case. There were no elections in the seven polling units, and if there was any, the onus was on the petitioners. This onus was not discharged in anyway as no results was tendered.

“The state collation officer in compliance with the margin of lead principle rightly reasoned that the outcomes of the elections could not be determined without conducting polls in the affected elections. Hence the commission’s decision to conduct supplementary elections in line with these principles.”

The ex-governor urged APC members, “supporters and lovers of justice, who have been outraged by this verdict, to be calm and unruffled”.

He insisted that the verdict cannot stand.

“As they say in law, you cannot build something on nothing,”Aregbesola said.

Youths protest panel’s judgment as Oyetola preaches peace

A Group of youths under the Osun Concerned Citizens yesterday protested judgment of the Osun Election Petitions Tribunal on the September 22, 2018 state governorship poll.

Last Friday, a three-man tribunal ruled that the People’s Democratic Party’s governorship candidate, Senator Ademola Adeleke, was the winner of the poll.

During the peaceful protest, the youths, in their hundreds, marched round major streets of Osogbo, the state capital, from Ayetoro junction via Old Garage and Okefia to Olaiya area.

The youths, who carried placards with various inscriptions like “Oyetola remain our governor”, “We voted for Governor Oyetola”, “We cannot be intimidated” among others, caused a traffic gridlock for many hours.

Addressing the crowd, the group’s General Secretary, Comrade Yaya Ademola, said the protest was aimed at sensitising the people about issues associated with the governorship election.

Ademola, who noted the lacuna in the tribunal’s ruling, was optimistic that the Court of Appeal would overturn the tribunal judgment.

He said any attempt to distort the majority votes would be resisted.

But, Governor Gboyega Oyetola, while addressing the protesters, urged the people to keep the peace as they await the final judicial pronouncement on the governorship election.

He said the people, while expressing their views on the tribunal judgment, should exercise caution, adding that he believes in the judicial process.

A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Adeniyi Adesina, quoted the governor as saying: “I believe that the judicial process should be allowed to take its course. I have hope that we shall be vindicated and our mandate, which the people freely gave us, will be reaffirmed.

“Let us all be law-abiding as we keep hope alive.”

http://thenationonlineng.net/verdict-on-osun-governorship-poll-cannot-stand-says-aregbesola/amp/?__twitter_impression=true

PDP are getting dumb everyday with this their fake news

There's no need for all this rubbish. Can protest effect any changes? Just allow the court do its job as an a appeal has been filed already.

I will so love this I swear. Been looking for opportunity to show the children of hate, anger and bitterness that if this election is conducted 100 times, Buhari will caned Atiku. But the plus will just be that a similar governorship election in one state that PDP won will suffer the same fate and APC will win it this time.

Let's do this please.

What do you expect from a sunk man. The chest beaters are deceiving him big time.

What is wrong with this olongbo guy? PDP want to reap where they didn't sow. It won't germinate this time around.

Despite few shortcomings in this election, politicians now know that if you don't work you will be rejected, and they are doing everything to win the people to their side by working. Plus and minus, our democracy is improving.

Though this can't be said of some regions who vote on hate and returned a non-working government because it's running on the platform of a particular party.

Las las we all will be fine.

More trouble for the bureau de change

TonyeBarcanista:
You go confirm am!



@Quickberry fear God

Yinmu

Why is nairaland like this for God sake? And Seun is not even doing anything about it. This guy has denied being on twitter just lately and news of him on twitter still make FP, it's pathetic.

TonyeBarcanista:
See you in court Dan

We meet there bro. You know as e dey go na.

TonyeBarcanista:
Yimu

Hahaha

garfield1:
By 314 votes.i wish apc inflated the figures a little

Haba Calm down na!
Losing is part of the game as you can't win all the time.
At least we got Kano. Just accept this one too.

Peacecore:
sharap,wot did u hypocrite said when Fayose as a sitting gov.was accused of corruption?

Leave those hypocrites alone. They condemned Ganduje but worship Ibori. Isn't their case pathetic?

He was never APC Spokesman. He's just a Buhari supporter to the core. We like carrying wrong and fake news in this country. Rubbish

Anybody that does not verify news in this PDP fake news era before believing and spreading it is on his own. The Dubai failed strategy is very much alive to make their gullible supporters happy.

If you think am lying ask Atiku lawyers.

Odumakin is hungry so I understand his anger.

Chai this is not too good for the upcoming Star oo

This one is already living in fool's paradise

Ikeboboafri:
Oladipupo Adebutu, a factional  governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2019 elections in Ogun State has disclosed why he worked against Dapo Abiodun, the Governor-elect of the state. It was gathered that Abiodun and Adebutu are natives of Remo in Ogun State, however the PDP Governorship candidate teamed up with the governorship candidate of the  Allied People’s Movement, Adekunle Akinlade, against Abiodun in the governorship election after his loss in court to governorship candidate of the PDP, Senator Buruji Kashamu. Adebutu who revealed why he worked against

Dapo Abiodun in a statement released by his media aide, Afolabi Orekoya,  said he was merely interested in making a government that works for the people. He also disclosed that he will not defect to the APC, but will support the governor-elect in the interest of the people.

“All I did during the last elections was tailored towards establishing a government that would work for the people,” he said.“It is time for the government to consider the situation at Tai Solarin University of Education, Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital, Olokola Liquefied Natural Gas and have compassion for government employees,” he added.

Please who exactly is talking here?

Very good. They too have just lost the Deputy Senate President seat. Nobody should complain

Atiku seeing this thread

BanevsJoker:
In law, tampering with evidence is enough to have a case thrown out.

Oya throw it out ooo

Your form was tampered with, agreed. Your several Bureau de change accounts were tampered with too?

Thieves and corrupt individuals always have funny ways of defending their spoils.

Ya going deep down sir!
Be ready to have multiple toothaches.

PDP right now

This lizard again?

This kind story they burn wailing Wailers ooo