For some observers of political developments in the state, the Friday judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, affirming Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the governorship election on July 16, 2022, was not just another judicial pronouncement; rather, it pointed to an impending repeat of history.
Subsequent to assuming control over rule of the state as its 6th fairly chosen lead representative, Adeleke and his allies probably felt satisfied, yet they were not ignorant about how slim the delight on their hands was, due to a case recorded before a political race request council, testing his triumph.
The trial of the petition that was started by the All Progressives Congress candidate at the poll, Adegboyega Oyetola, and threatened to shorten the new governor’s tenure was already in full swing by the time Adeleke was settling in as governor.
However, Adeleke continued to run the state despite the fear and expectations of the two men’s supporters, who have emerged as the two most valuable brands on the Osun political scene since 2018.
Adeleke was told by a tribunal led by Justice Tertsea Kume, who was just getting used to his new position, to step down in favor of Oyetola, who was said to have won the governorship election.
In the January 27, 2023 judgment, Equity Kume, in the larger part assessment of the board, considered the request of the solicitors, that over-casting a ballot happened in 749 units, spread across 10 nearby government regions, during the survey.
Oyetola’s vote total decreased to 314, 921, and Adeleke’s vote total decreased to 290, 266 after votes recorded at units where over-voting occurred were deducted.
Following that, Kume declared Oyetola the poll winner because he received the majority of legal votes. This disappointed Adeleke’s supporters, who took to the streets to protest the panel’s decision.
However, Justice B. Ogbuli issued a minority ruling that upheld Adeleke’s election and rejected Oyetola’s petition.
The supporters of Adeleke and Oyetola had a heated argument on social media in the days leading up to Friday, when the Court of Appeal announced its decision. Both sides expressed optimism for a successful outcome, pointing to the strength of their respective positions presented to the court.
The APC legal team also filed a cross-appeal challenging the tribunal panel’s decision that resolved the issue of alleged forgery of testimonial in favor of Adeleke. This was in addition to reiterating its position that over-voting occurred during the governorship election that brought Adeleke to power.
However, the PDP legal team raised the issue of the Kume-led panel’s bias against Adeleke, pointing to the majority judgment’s reference to Kiss Daniel’s Buga, a song, as evidence of the judges’ dislike for Adeleke.
The team also insisted that the witnesses called did not prove that the tribunal had overvoted to give Oyetola the victory. They said that data on the Bimolda Voters Accreditation System machines and the voter register, as well as Form ECA8, should have been used by the lower court, not the INEC’s backend server’s BVAS report.
Justice Mohammed Lawal, who presided over the Appeal panel, overturned the tribunal’s decision to uphold Adeleke’s election and nullify the results of the governorship poll.
Since then, Oyetola has indicated his determination to take the matter to the Supreme Court.
Following the Appeal Court’s decision, many Adeleke supporters were already making comparisons to the conflict over the 2018 Osun governorship election, in which Oyetola and Adeleke were also involved.
Even though the situation in 2022 and 2018 might not be the same, this particular group was of the opinion that court decisions on the current governorship dispute were strikingly similar to the battle that was fought in 2018 before the Supreme Court established Oyetola’s power.
A chieftain of the PDP in Osogbo local government, Asimiyu Olaiya, and Thomas Oladipo, who preferred to be identified as Adeleke’s supporter, as well as Foluso Orimadegun, a member of the ruling party in the Ifelodun Local Government, all posited that Osun governor would survive the final lap of the race, banking on favorable history. They further explained why they believed that the governor was not far.
They quickly cited the fact that former governor Rauf Aregbesola won all elective positions for his party, Action Congress of Nigeria, in the state in 2011, a few months after becoming governor. They claimed that the same scenario simply reoccurred, with the influence of the incumbent governor, Adeleke, winning all elective posts, except for one for his party, the PDP, in the most recent general elections. They believed that political issues in Osun had a tendency to recur.
Orimadegun, a member of the party, advised, “You should also try to look at the issues.” Politics in Osun are nothing new; rather, history is simply repeating itself. First and foremost, consider how Aregbesola came in November 2010 and won all elective situations for his party under a half year into his residency in the 2011 general races.
You can also examine the beginning and end of the political conflict between Oyetola and Adeleke in 2018. With the direction the current court case between the two men is taking, you can see that thunder will undoubtedly strike twice at the same time if you conduct careful analysis.
“After the run-off in 2018, INEC re-elected Oyetola, and Adeleke went to the tribunal, where he won in front of the panel. Oyetola prevailed in his appeal of the verdict. His case was also upheld by the Supreme Court. In the ongoing court case, I see the same thing taking place.
“In 2022, INEC returned Adeleke, Oyetola went to the tribunal, where he received a favorable verdict, and Adeleke appealed, which he recently won. Although many individuals may not believe it, I anticipate the same outcome in the 2022 governorship race as in the 2018 case.
However, many APC members and Oyetola supporters rejected this argument, insisting that the Supreme Court would uphold the lower Tribunal’s decision and reinstate Oyetola in office.
Funso Fagbongbe, an ex-Senior Special Assistant to the Governor of Osun State on Political Affairs, Rasaq Olaoye, an APC chieftain in the Ila Local Government Area, and Titilayo Ogunremi, an APC member in the Odo Otin Local Government Area, stated that those seeking a repeat of history were only expressing their wishes, which may or may not come true.
While insisting that Oyetola would benefit from the Supreme Court’s decision, Fagbongbe went on to say that “those referring to history and saying what happened in the 2018 case would happen this time were only expressing their wishes.”
However, inform them that the two cases are distinct. We have moved on from the Court of Appeal’s decision. We are now focusing on the Supreme Court, and we are confident that the Supreme Court will rule in Oyetola’s favor. We accept that will occur.”