The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State, Honourable Ladi Adebutu, has described the dismissal of his petition by the election petition tribunal as disheartening and a threat to democracy.
In a statement by his media aide, Afolabi Orekoya, the PDP candidate said the judgment was based on “funny technicalities and failed to consider the substantial merit and evidence tendered during the trial.”
Adebutu said he would not relent until justice was served in the matter as he would exhaust all legal avenues to ensure the will of the people of the state as expressed through the ballot on March 18 prevailed.
“We firmly believe in the principles of democracy, transparency, and the rule of law. It is with these principles in mind that we entered into the legal process to seek justice for the people of Ogun State whose mandate was stolen.
“Our commitment to this course remains unwavering, and we will exhaust all available legal avenues to ensure that the will of the people is upheld, justice prevails and the mandate is retrieved.
“Regrettably, the Tribunal chose to focus on mere technicalities and the use of English rather than engage in a thorough examination of the glaring evidence presented.
“We submitted substantial evidence that raised serious questions about the conduct of the election, even marked ballot papers and we are confident that a closer examination of this evidence would have revealed the true nature of the irregularities and discrepancies that occurred during the election.
“Our legal team presented enough evidence that established non-compliance with the Electoral Act and INEC guidelines, harassment and intimidation of voters leading to the disenfranchisement of over 49,000 voters which is a figure higher than the margin of lead of 13,915 as purportedly declared by INEC.
“We obtained duly certified true copies of documents from INEC and paid for with official receipts to back our claims which proved all the content of our petition and justified our concerns over the election.
“We condemn unequivocally the judgment of the Tribunal. Consequently, we have mandated our legal team to appeal the judgment. We will not relent until due justice is served.
“With what was displayed at the Tribunal on Saturday, it is worrisome that the court may no longer be the hope of a common man.
“Adebutu assures the people of Ogun State that we will not be deterred by this setback. We will continue to fight for the rights and aspirations of our supporters and the citizens of our dear state.
“Recall the case of the current governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, who was also deprived of justice at the tribunal but got due justice at the Appeal and Supreme Courts,” the statement said.
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