The Court of Appeal in Abuja on Friday upheld the election of Ademola Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the Osun State governor.
A three-member panel of the appellate court led by Mohammed Shuaibu unanimously overturned the earlier decision of the election petition tribunal which nullified the governor’s victory earlier in January.
The immediate-past governor of the state, Adegboyega Oyetola, who came second in the 16 July 2022 election had filed a petition challenging Mr Adeleke’s victory.
The Osun State Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo, which upheld the allegation of over-voting in the areas won by Mr Adeleke, had declared Mr Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the poll after deducting “unlawful votes” from the PDP’s scores.
But Mr Adeleke had appealed against the lower court’s decision, urging the appellate court to set it aside and re-affirm his victory.
Upholding Mr Adeleke’s victory on Friday, the Court of Appeal held that the tribunal was “wrong to reach the conclusion that there was over-voting during the state governorship election held on 16 July 2022.”
Mr Shuaibu who prepared and read the lead decision said “the burden of proving the allegations of over-voting lies squarely with the respondents (Mr Oyetola and the APC).”
“It is inconceivable to assume that the testimonies of the respondents’ witnesses had any probative value,” the appellate court held.
The Court of Appeal noted that Mr Oyetola and the APC “did not tender the voters’ registers and Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS machines,” which captured data of eligible voters at the Osun governorship election.
The court held that the foundation of what transpired at the polling units would only be established by the evidence that is contained in the voter register and BVAS machines.
