Appeal Court reserves judgment in suit challenging Oyetola’s removal as APC candidate

The Court of Appeal in Abuja, on Friday, reserved judgement in two appeals challenging the removal of Osun State governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, as the All Progressives Congress (APC) the last governorship election in the state.

After listening to arguments from lawyers to parties in the appeals on Friday, the Court of Appeal’s three-member panel said a date for judgement would be communicated to the lawyers.

Both Mr Oyetola and the APC had filed the appeals to challenge the 30 September decision of the Federal High Court in Abuja which invalidated his candidacy in the 16 July governorship election in the state.

In the contested judgement of the Federal High Court, the judge, Emeka Nwite, said the Mai Mala Buni-led caretaker committee of the APC who submitted the names of Mr Oyetola and his deputy governorship candidate, Benedict Alabi, to INEC breached the Nigerian constitution and the Electoral Act.

The judge held that Mr Buni violated the provisions of Section 183 of the constitution when he doubled as the governor of Yobe State and the chairman of the National Caretaker Committee of the APC.

The case was instituted by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) against Mr Buni and four others.

The PDP, through its lawyer, Kehinde Ogunwumiju, had, on 7 April, commenced the suit, challenging the nomination and sponsorship of Messrs Oyetola and Alabi as the duly nominated candidates of the APC for the recently concluded governorship poll, in which Ademola Adeleke of the PDP was declared the winner by INEC.

Challenging the competence of the suit, Kunle Adegoke, who represented Mr Oyetola, argued that the PDP did not have the right to commence the action and that the suit was statute-barred.

But Mr Ogunwumiju, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) argued that the plaintiff (PDP) rightly commenced the suit under Section 285(14) (c) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

In his verdict, Mr Nwite agreed with Mr Ogunwumiju’s arguments and declared as null and void, the nomination of Messrs Oyetola and Alabi by the APC.

The court said the decisions taken by Mr Buni, including forwarding the names of Messrs Oyetola and Alabi to INEC, amounted to a nullity in law.