Senator Ademola Adeleke has condemned the court judgement that nullified his nomination as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 22, 2018, governorship election in Osun State.
Justice Oathman Musa of an Abuja High Court sitting in Bwari Area Council had, on Tuesday, nullified the nomination of Adeleke as the candidate of the party on the ground that he does not possess the requisite educational qualification – a secondary school certificate, to contest for the governorship position.
The judgment was against the backdrop of a case filed by two chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Wahab Raheem, and Adam Habeeb, barely few weeks to the election, accusing Adeleke of not possessing a secondary school certificate to contest for the office.
But, the party, in a statement by Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisation, which was signed by Niyi Owolade, in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, yesterday, claimed that there was a lacuna in the judgment.
The party added that the judgement had subverted justice by ignoring four critical evidences to rule against validated facts and submissions.
It affirmed that the judgment was a travesty of justice, and a purchased ruling, designed to negatively affect the outcome of the Osun governorship legal tussle and would not stand.
The party, therefore, vowed to appeal the judgement.
It also said that the judgment was passed in error, arguing that in line with Nigeria’s constitution, Adeleke was qualified to run for the governorship.
It further claimed that there were two rulings that affirmed Adeleke’s qualification, adding that the rulings made it clear that Adeleke had satisfied all the requirements of the law to contest for the office.
The statement reads in part: “We receive with shock and bewilderment the judgment of a Bwari High Court on the propriety of the statement of results of Senator Ademola Adeleke as a contestant for the governorship of Osun State. The judgment delivered today (Tuesday) subverted justice by ignoring four critical evidences to rule against validated facts and submissions.
“While we are set to appeal the judgement, we also find it compelling to put the records straight by listing out the fatal flaws in the ruling and why it cannot stand before a superior court.
“It would be recalled first of all that the matter in question has been addressed by two High Court rulings, affirming that in the face of the constitution, Senator Adeleke is qualified to run for the governorship. The two rulings delivered in September 2018 held that Senator Adeleke satisfied requirements of the law to contest for the office. It is trite in law that once a court of coordinate jurisdiction has ruled on a matter, a court of similar jurisdiction cannot entertain it. Shockingly, the Bwari judge breached this precept to subvert justice.
“Secondly, we want to note that the judge erred in law by failing to take note of the expiration of 180 days for ruling on pre-election matters. Even when a December 2018 judgement with respect to the issue was presented, the judge ignored it. We note that the judge violated the law by adjudicating over a matter whose filing and hearing period has expired.
