Osun Election Petition Tribunal Not Relocated To Abuja – Findings

 

Ismaeel Uthman

THE governorship election petition tribunal on the July 16 gubernatorial election in the State of Osun has not been relocated to Abuja, findings have revealed. 

OSUN DEFENDER noted that processes were still being filed at the Osun High Court Complex, venue of the tribunal as of yesterday. 

This is contrary to claims and impression by some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the tribunal has been relocated to Abuja as requested by their party. 

Some of the APC members and supporters had taken to their various social media handles to celebrate the purported relocation of the tribunal to Abuja, considering it a plus for Governor Adegboyega Oyetola and the party. 

But the Secretary of the tribunal, Barr. David Mike, when contacted yesterday, said the tribunal was still holding in Osogbo, just as he dismissed the relocation claim.  

According to Mike, there was no communication from the judicial authority informing or suggesting to the tribunal that it has been moved to another place. 

He said: “I am not aware of any relocation of the tribunal. As you can see, I am here in my office at the High Court Complex in Osogbo, and these are the processes filed by the parties involved in the tribunal. If the tribunal has been relocated, I would not be sitting here and the processes would not be here.

“I also read on social media that the tribunal has been relocated but that is not true. As I am talking to you, there is no communication to the tribunal that it has been moved to somewhere else.

“Of course, I am aware that some people had written the President of the Court of Appeal to seek relocation of the tribunal and counsel to one of the parties actually applied to my lordship during a sitting here that the panel be relocated to another place. 

“But as of today, the tribunal is still sitting in Osogbo. It has not been moved to another place.”

Investigations by the medium revealed that the APC and Governor Adegboyega Oyetola were committed to getting the tribunal relocated to Abuja, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is opposing the move.

It was gathered that the APC had written the President of the Court of Appeal to seek for relocation of the tribunal to Abuja for security reasons. 

The APC, in a statement, had accused the PDP of planning to unleash attack on its witnesses at the tribunal hearing. 

In the statement signed by its Chairman, Prince Gboyega Famodun, the APC also accused PDP of planning mayhem regardless of the outcome of the tribunal, just to create impression that Oyetola’s administration was unpopular in the state.

Reacting to the allegation, the PDP in a statement signed by its Caretaker Chairman, Akindele Adekunle, also accused APC of raising the alarm of insecurity to force change of venue of the Tribunal sitting to Abuja.

According to the PDP, the APC was scared of the expected ease of verification and consequent invalidation of its claim of over-voting, if the tribunal sittings continue in Osogbo.

The party also alleged that the APC had concluded plans to halt further sittings of the tribunal, while it perfected plan to expose the BVAS machines to doctoring, if the panel sitting should be relocated.

While reaffirming its opposition to relocation of the Tribunal to Abuja, the PDP stated that the ruling party was already searching for evidence to convince the Court of Appeal to approve the relocation.