Ogun Election Tribunal Update: PDP loses House of Reps seat

Ogun Election Tribunal Update: PDP loses House of Reps seat

Friday, October 9, 2015 12:40 pm


Abiodun Onafuye/Abeokuta

Aremo Adekoya Adesegun: election cancelled

Aremo Adekoya Adesegun: election cancelled

The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abeokuta in Ogun state, has cancelled the election of the PDP candidate for Ijebu East, Ijebu North and Ogun Waterside constituency.

Aremo Adekoya Adesegun Abdel-Majid, 53 years old, is at present the occupant of the seat.

Justice Tobi Ebimowei led three man tribunal panel has ordered for fresh election in 222 units where irregularities were noticed.

Biyi Ismail of the APC had approached the court to ask the court to declare him winner of the 28 March ,2015 National Assembly election in the state.

The tribunal stated that the petitioner presented 21 witnesses while the respondent called 15 witnesses.

Biyi Ismail: APC candidate

Biyi Ismail: APC candidate

The petitioner adduced that many irregularities and non compliance marred the election and thereby called for the annulment of the election.

The tribunal,having perused all the claims and evidences from both parties and after deduction of the votes from the 222 units where irregularities were noticed,declared that the petitioner still has more valid votes than the respondent.

Total votes adduced to the respondent after deduction was 14,371 while the respondent had 14,234. With the majority votes being a slim 137 votes the Judge said it was much lower than the cancelled votes.

He said,”Calculation and readjustment of the valid votes are substantial and affected the outcome of the election result. We are hereby nullified the return of the first respondent and set it aside.

“We therefore ordered that fresh election be conducted within 90 days of the delivering of the judgment,”he declared.

The verdict was part of the setbacks suffered by the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun state today, as their APC counterparts have successfully upturned the party’s other victories in House of Assembly elections in Ijebu-Ode, Ijebu East, Ipokia and Ijebu North local government areas. Reruns have been ordered in polling units where irregularities were proven.

The election of Olujimi Otukoya of the PDP in Ijebu North East was,however,upheld.

In Ijebu Ode, Tola Banjo, a former deputy speaker had challenged the election of Wale Alausa of the PDP, alleging manipulation of the polls in some wards in the town. But in giving its verdict today, the Tribunal ordered rerun in 14 polling units in Wards 6 and 7 in the town, to determine the real winner.

Adejuwon O Oyenuga of the Peoples Democratic Party was declared the winner of the Ijebu East House of Assembly election last April. But the tribunal ordered that fresh election be conducted in 7 polling units where irregularities were noticed.


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