Former Osun State governor, Mr Gboyega Oyetola has been declared the winner last July’s election.
In a majority decision of two judges to one, the state’s Election Petition Tribunal, chaired by Justice Tertse Kume, ruled against Governor Senator Ademola Adeleke.
The majority judgment ordered that the Certificate of Return should be withdrawn from Adeleke and issued to Oyetola.
The tribunal ruled against Adeleke for overvoting in some polling units across the state.
Adeleke, the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), was declared winner of the governorship election held last 16 July. He was sworn in as governor on 27 November.
Oyetola, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) together with Adeleke and PDP before the tribunal challenging over voting in 749 polling units and qualification of Adeleke.
The sitting was concluded 11 days ago after adoption of final written addresses of parties involved.
Reading the majority judgement, Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Tertsea Kume said the election was marred by over-voting. He thereby deducted the number of over-voting presented by Oyetola and APC.
He says having deducted the over-voting figure, Oyetola scored 314,921 while Ademola gathered 290,266.
According to the tribunal the ground of the petition before it are three: that Adeleke was not qualified to contest based on his academic qualifications.
Others are the Adeleke was not elected by majority of the electorates and that the election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission was not in compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act.
Justice Kume said the petitioners were challenging results of election in ten local government areas, which are Ede North, Ede South, Egbedore, Ejigbo, Ila, Ilesa west, Irepodun, Obokun, Olorunda and Osogbo.
Adeleke in his response on 23rd day of August denied the allegations levelled against him by the APC and Oyetola.
He added that the petitioners pointed the attention of the tribunal to the secondary school certificate of Adeleke which carries 1981 while Osun State was not in existence.
Ruling on the forgery, the court said Adeleke’s other qualifications have qualified him to contest for the post of Governor.
The tribunal referred to the statement of admission of “seemingly over-voting” made by an INEC official who appeared before the tribunal as respondent’s witness.
He said the defence by the respondents on the over-voting are unreliable and blamed the INEC for producing contradictory results, stating that it put question mark on the readiness of the Commision to conduct credible election.
The Tribunal ordered INEC to withdraw Certificate of Returns issued to Adeleke.
However, in his minority one of the judges agreed with the majority judgement on the qualification but discountenance the evidence of the Prosecution Witness.
