The Governor-elect of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has vowed to defend and retain his electoral victory before the election petition tribunal, declaring that his emergence as governor-elect was in total compliance with the law and will of the people.
Adeleke, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), was declared the winner of the Osun State governorship election held on July 16.
He secured 403,371 votes to defeat Governor Gboyega Oyetola of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who got 375,027 votes.
But Oyetola has challenged the outcome of the governorship election at the Election Petitions Tribunal.
In a petition dated August 5, the governor is asking the court to nullify Adeleke’s election because he was not qualified to contest and that he was not elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast.
Oyetola said Adeleke forged the certificates submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and did not comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022.
In a statement issued Saturday on his behalf by his spokesperson, Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the Osun State governor-elect declared that the July 16, 2022 election was one of the most transparent elections in recent Nigerian history. He vowed that the people’s mandate freely given to him against overwhelming odds would be defended and validated.
According to the statement, the governor-elect said the PDP’s legal department would take appropriate action on the filing, calling on his supporters at home and abroad to remain calm as “this divine victory cannot be stolen through the backdoor.
“I urge the good people of Osun State who voted massively to reject bad governance to remain calm. We are doing the needful to defend their mandate. We will do all within our powers to ensure judicial validation of our victory as this is an election globally certified as a great advancement in electoral transparency and integrity.
“We also want to reaffirm our faith in the judiciary as a bastion of hope and justice. We have unshakeable trust in God that this election petition shall end in another landmark victory for us and the resilient people of Osun State,” the statement concluded.
Yinka Kolawole
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