By Adeleye Kunle
Senator Ademola Adeleke, the Governor-elect of Osun State, has vowed to defend and retain his electoral victory before the election petition tribunal, claiming that his election as governor-elect was in complete accordance with the law and the will of the people.
Adeleke, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, was declared the winner of the Osun State governorship election on July 16.
He received 403,371 votes to defeat All Progressives Congress (APC) Governor Gboyega Oyetola, who received 375,027 votes.
However, Oyetola has filed a petition with the Election Petitions Tribunal to challenge the outcome of the governorship election.
In a petition dated August 5, the governor requests that the court annul Adeleke’s election because he was not qualified to run and was not elected by a majority of the lawfully cast votes.
Adeleke, according to Oyetola, forged the certificates submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and violated the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.
The Osun State governor-elect declared yesterday, through his spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, that the July 16, 2022 election was one of the most transparent in recent Nigerian history. He vowed that the mandate freely given to him by the people would be defended and validated in the face of overwhelming odds.
The governor-elect said in a statement that the PDP’s legal department would take appropriate action on the filing, and he urged his supporters at home and abroad to remain calm because “this divine victory cannot be stolen through the backdoor.”
“I implore the good people of Osun State, who overwhelmingly voted to reject bad governance, to remain calm.” We are doing everything possible to defend their mandate. We will do everything in our power to ensure judicial validation of our victory, as this election has been globally recognized as a significant advancement in electoral transparency and integrity.
“We also want to reaffirm our trust in the judiciary as a pillar of hope and justice.” “We have complete faith in God that this election petition will result in another historic victory for us and the tenacious people of Osun State,” the statement concluded.
