NASS Election Petition Tribunal Receives 5 Petitions In Ogun

Abeokuta – The Ogun State Election Petition Tribunal has received five petitions challenging the result of two Senate and three House of Representatives Elections conducted on Saturday, February 23 in the State.

Ayoola Sosanwo, the candidate of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun East Senatorial District is challenging the victory of Olalekan Mustapha of the All Progressives Congress (APC) who was returned winner of the election.

Mustapha was declared the winner of the election after polling 85,761 votes to defeat Sosanwo, his closest rival who was credited with 83,528 votes.

In the petition tagged EPT/OG/NASS/SEN/03/2019, Sosanwo is praying the tribunal to void the return of Mustapha on the group that he was not duly elected; declare the election inconclusive and order rerun in three wards in Ijebu East, Sagamu and Ijebu North East local governments; and in the alternative, withdraw the certificate of returns from Mustapha and issues him same within 24 hours of judgement.

In the same vein, the candidate of the PDP in Ogun West Senatorial District, Odunjo Odunleye is also challenging the result which returned Tolu Odebiyi of the APC as the Senator-Elect of the District.

Odebiyi was declared the winner of the election having polled 56,452 votes with the candidate of the Allied People’s Movement (APM), Olusegun Gbelegi scoring 48,691 while Odunjo scored 45,454 votes.

INDEPENDENT observed that there are discrepancies in the figures quoted by Odunjo before the tribunal and the results recorded in INEC form EC8E(I).
In the petition titled EPT/OG/NASS/SEN/04/2019, the petitioner, who joined APC and INEC as respondents, is seeking the relief of the court to declare the result of the election as number and void and to conduct a fresh election within 21 days of the decision of the tribunal in the Senatorial District.

In the House of Representatives Election, Sunmonu Monsuru of the PDP, is challenging the return of Ojugbele Jimoh of APC in Ado-Odo/Ota Federal Constituency arguing that the election was marred by irregularities, corrupt practices and non-compliance with electoral laws.

In the petition titled EPT/OG/NASS/REP/05/2019, the petitioner indicated that Ojugbele was credited with 24,134 votes while he scored 15,763 votes.

The petitioner argued that agents of his political party were not allowed to vote as they were allegedly harassed, intimidated, manhandled and teargassed by police and thugs.
He further alleged that card readers and voter’s register were not verified; ballots not counted openly while over voting were allegedly allowed in polling booths.
He prayed the election to be declared null and void adding that the court should order a fresh election or rerun within 21 days of the decision of the tribunal.

In Ijebu Ode/Odogbolu/Ijebu North East federal constituency, Taiwo Kabir Shote of the PDP is also challenging the return of Osusanya Kolapo Korede of APC as the winner of the election.

Shote argued that Korede did not win the majority of lawful votes cast in the Constituency and that the result is declared inconclusive and rerun ordered in wards where votes were cancelled.

In the grounds of his petition tagged EPT/OG/NASS/REP/02/2019, Shote said about 10, 846 votes were cancelled in Ward 8, Ijebu North East; Ward 5 Unit 5 in Ijebu Ode and Ward 10 Unit 3 in Odogbolu.

The petitioner maintained that, though there was no basis for the cancellation of results in those polling units, the margin of victory was less than the cancelled votes which, according to him, should have compelled INEC to declare the result inconclusive.
Meanwhile, a PDP aspirant in Ijebu North/Ijebu East/Ogun Waterside Federal Constituency, Harrison Adeyemi, has also approached the tribunal challenging the nomination of Adekoya Adesegun as the candidate of the party.

Adesegun was declared the winner of the election in the Constituency.
Adeyemi argued that he was validly nominated by the PDP at a primary conducted for the purpose but allegedly and unlawfully excluded from contesting the election.
He’s seeking the relief of the court in suit number EPT/OG/NASS/REP/01/2019 to declare him the winner of the election, set aside the certificate of returns issued to Adesegun and order the INEC to issue him a fresh one.