By Kola Olabisi
It is worthwhile to inform the opposition and their co-travellers who
have been basking in the euphoria of the purported disqualification of
the candidature of Governor Gboyega Oyetola by the Federal High Court,
Abuja, over the ongoing governorship election petition tribunal in
Osogbo, that they have failed and have their mission bungled again as
the controversial decision has no effect on the subsisting election
petition in Osogbo.
It is an indisputable fact that the respondent has 14-day window of
inalienable right to challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.
It is only if the appeal is not filed within the stipulated 14 days
allowed by the Constitution that the judgement becomes permanent and
binding.
It would be recalled that the Osun State Chairman of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), Prince Gboyega Famodun, had stated the
readiness of Governor Oyetola to challenge the judgement with a view
to upturning the decision.
The import of this explanation is that the tribunal will go ahead with
its sessions unhindered while the legal fireworks on the appeal
against the Federal High Court decision too would be carried on
without any let or hindrance.
Information revealed that it was the fear of the potency of the
grounds of the petition filed by Oyetola at the governorship election
petition tribunal that is prompting the opposition Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) to resort to instituting frivolous, time-wasting and
distractive matters in different courts.
It is necessary to explain this matter in order to educate the
unsuspecting members of the public that Governor Oyetola’s petition is
unshakeable at the tribunal and that all lawful means would be
exploited to seek redress in the interest of the good people of Osun
State.
Those who are misleading and misinforming the members of the public on
the true position of the development in the governorship election
petition tribunal on both traditional and social media should desist
from doing so as its unintended consequences might be catastrophic.
This indeed is bad news for the jubilant opposition and their enemies
within who have been pretending to be members of the APC but are
assiduously and conscientiously working against the party and its
governorship candidate, Oyetola.
The recent Federal High Court episode was indeed a blessing to
Governor Oyetola as it affords him more opportunity to know those who
are fully with him in both body and spirit and those who are with him
only physically while their spirits are elsewhere.
It was discovered that the hoopla created by the suspicious
disqualification of Governor Oyetola was more resounding among the
rebellious tendency of the APC who flooded the social media space with
unprintable remarks indicating that they were wildly jubilating over
the development apparently meant to merely disorganise and distract
Oyetola, the Osun APC and its members.
One noticeable anomaly with the decision of the Federal High Court,
Abuja, is that there are copious decisions from the Court of Appeal to
the Supreme Court that are at variance with the latest decision.
I have explicit confidence in the Court of Appeal that the latest
decision of the Federal High Court would be overturned because there
is no basis for the court’s decision in this instance.
It would be recalled that the Supreme Court’s judgment on the Ondo
State governorship election had validated the Governor Mai Mala Buni
Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the
APC.
The judgment of the Supreme Court clarified that Buni’s position as
acting chairman of the committee wasn’t contrary to the provision of
Section 183 of the Constitution.
It would also be recalled that the Supreme Court had affirmed that
Buni’s position of acting chairman of the CECPC was held temporarily
which wasn’t akin to Executive office or paid employment as envisaged
by Section 183 of the Constitution.
…OlabisI is the Media Adviser to the Osun State APC Chairman
