Court voids Oyetola’s nomination as APC candidate for Osun guber

A federal high court in Abuja has nullified the nomination of Gboyega Oyetola, Osun governor, and his deputy, Benedict Alabi, as candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the governorship election in the state.

Emeka Nwite, the presiding judge, gave the ruling on Friday in a suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/468/2022 and filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The suit has Mai Mala Buni, who was then the acting chairman of the APC, and four others as defendants.

Nwite, in his judgment, held that the nomination of Oyetola and his deputy, was unlawful and unconstitutional because Buni, who submitted their names to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), violated the provisions of section 183 of the constitution and section 82(3) of the Electoral Act 2022.

Kehinde Ogunwumiju, counsel to the PDP, had, in the suit dated April 7, prayed the court to void the nomination of Oyetola and his deputy on the grounds that the action of Buni, governor of Yobe, who acted in the capacity of the party chairman, breached the law.

However, Kunle Adegoke, counsel to Oyetola, disagreed with Ogunwumiju’s argument and urged the court to dismiss the case for being without merit.

He submitted that the plaintiff lacked the legal standing to file a lawsuit against the defendants since it is not an APC member and because the nomination process is a subject for political parties alone.

The defendant’s counsel also argued that the suit was statute-barred, hence the court should dismiss it.

But Nwite agreed with the submissions of the plaintiff and declared the nomination of the governor and his deputy null and void.