Osun: Tribunal begins sitting amid tight security

With the commencement of legal fireworks over the conduct of August 9, 2014 governorship poll in Osun, the Election Petition Tribunal, on Wednesday, at its inaugural sitting granted both the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC), the leave to inspect electoral materials used for the conduct of the exercise.
Amid tight security, the Election Petition Tribunal began its proceedings around 9.10 am as journalists, lawyers, members of the APC and the PDP were frisked by security agents at the main gate of the State High Court, Osogbo, before gaining entry to the venue of the tribunal.
The three-man Election Petition Tribunal headed by Justice I. M. Bako, during their first sitting, granted the reliefs sought by both counsels of the PDP and APC, Mr Kunle Adegoke and Mr Afolabi Fasahanu, Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) respectively, seeking the approval of the tribunal to examine sensitive and non-sensitive materials used for the conduct the election exercise.
Adegoke, who is the lead counsel to the APC had prayed the tribunal to move outside the pre-hearing session, the election materials used during the poll for thorough inspection and examination.
According to Adegoke, the motion was brought in pursuant to Section 151 of the Electoral Act, paragraph 47 of the first schedule, stressing that the action was “intended to move the ambit of justice.”
Similarly, counsel for the PDP, Afolabi Fashanu (SAN), disclosed that he had submitted motion for the tribunal to grant the party leave to inspect electoral materials, which he said, were in the custody of INEC.
Fashanu said that “PDP has filed a motion seeking some relief, praying the tribunal to critically look at the consonance with relevant sections of the electoral laws, contending that “we approached the court with 18-paragraphs affidavit and filled with written address to support the application.
Subsequently, the chairman of the tribunal, Justice Bako granted both motions of APC and PDP but declined to announce the next date that the tribunal is expected to sit.
Meanwhile, the flag bearer of the PDP in the August 9, 2014 governorship poll, Senator Iyiola Omisore, on Wednesday, in Osogbo expressed his confidence in the integrity of the judiciary to retrieve what he termed his “stolen mandate” during the election exercise, which was won by Governor Rauf Aregbesola.
Speaking with journalists shortly after the inaugural sitting of the Election Petition Tribunal at the premises of Osun State High Court, he contended that with the avalanche of evidence available to the PDP and his legal team, the public would be stunned with facts and figures on how the governorship election was massively rigged.
Omisore, who arrived the court premises some minutes before 9.00am in company of the state PDP chairman, Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa and other stalwarts of the party said “I believe in the ability and unshaken integrity of the judiciary to retrieve my stolen mandate, which was freely and collectively given by the electorate in Osun during the August 9 governorship poll”.
According to him, “the PDP is here to challenge the result of the rigged election. We have come to expose the massive rigging, electoral malpractices, ballot stuffing and other vices that characterised the poll. This would further show the people that APC has no place in Osun”.
‘But the acting secretary of the APC in Osun, Mr Gboyega Famodun, countered the PDP, affirming that his party was absolutely ready for the fireworks at the election petition tribunal and the antics of the PDP.
He stated that “we have gone this lane before, even as an opposition party, we challenged the PDP for over three years and won. The facts are there that the APC won the August 9 governorship election squarely. Whatever they hope to bring to the tribunal, we are ready for them’’.