The legal team that handled the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship election case in Osun has distanced itself from a petition purportedly filed by the party and its candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, against Governor Ademola Adeleke.
The development has thrown fresh uncertainty into the legal battle arising from the August 15 governorship election, coming shortly after notices of two separate petitions were displayed at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and member of the APC legal team, Kunle Adegoke, said in an interview on Monday that the lawyers handling the party’s election matters were not involved in the preparation or filing of the petition listed as having been instituted by APC and Oyebamiji.
According to him, the legal team had, after reviewing the conduct and outcome of the election, advised the party’s candidate against pursuing the matter at the tribunal.
Adegoke explained that the recommendation followed consultations among members of the legal team, Oyebamiji, and other party leaders after the Independent National Electoral Commission announced Adeleke as the winner.
He said the lawyers identified issues that could potentially have formed the basis of an election petition but deliberately opted for restraint, arguing that further litigation could aggravate political tension in the state.
The legal team, he said, considered the broader interest of Osun and concluded that conceding the election would provide an opportunity for political tensions to ease.
Adegoke said the decision was also consistent with Oyebamiji’s subsequent congratulatory message to Adeleke, arguing that it would be inconsistent for the APC candidate to personally accept the result and later authorise another petition against the same outcome.
He described the petition attributed to the APC candidate and the party as unauthorised, stressing that the lawyers who participated in the party’s post-election review did not endorse it.
The SAN said the legal team had been involved in the party’s electoral matters for several years and was capable of identifying grounds upon which an election result could be challenged.
He maintained that the existence of possible electoral irregularities did not automatically translate into a decision to approach the tribunal, adding that the lawyers considered political stability and the interests of the people before reaching their recommendation.
He further disclosed that the team included other senior lawyers, among them Dr Biodun Layoonu, Dr Yomi Aliyu and Dr Muritala Abdulrasheed, as well as law professors and other legal practitioners.
Adegoke maintained that the lawyers were not motivated by personal hostility towards Adeleke or members of opposing political parties, insisting that their position was based on what they considered to be principled and strategic judgment.
Adegoke said whoever filed the petition purportedly on behalf of the APC and its governorship candidate did so without the approval of the party leadership or the candidate.
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(Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie)
