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Osun West PDP crisis: Court fixes  Feb 11 for judgement

From Fisayo Akinduro,  Osogbo
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The crisis rocking Osun West Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, will on February 11 be resolved as court gives judgment.

The case was instituted by Mr Akin Ogunbiyi against Mr Oyewumi, the Senatorial candidate of the party; Mr Adeleke; the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Ogunbiyi is challenging the process that produced Oyewunmi as the senatorial candidate of the party, citing for irregularities.

It would be recalled that the former governorship aspirant of the party, Dr. Akin Ogunbiyi, who later expressed interest in the Osun West Senatorial District ticket after loosing the governorship ticket to Ademola Adeleke, had dragged Akogun Lere Oyewumi, who is the senatorial candidate of the party, Senator Ademola Adeleke, the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the court for alleged  irregularities.

Prior to the resumed hearing of the case on Monday, the defendants through their counsels filed preliminary objections and written addresses in response to the originating summon and adopted their legal argument against the suit which seeks to return Ogunbiyi as the senatorial candidate of PDP.

Oyewunmi’s counsel, Dosu Babatunde challenged the court’s jurisdiction to hear the suit, saying that it’s a party affair and prayed the court to dismiss the suit, for want of competence.

He said that the senatorial primary election was held on October 6, 2018, but Ogunbiyi did not participate and also failed to explore internal mechanism of the party before rushing to court to institute case.

In their separate submissions, Adeleke’s counsel, Iyiola Akintola and counsel to PDP, Toafeek Tewogbade aligned with the submission of Dosu, asking the court to dismiss the suit.

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However, Ogunbiyi’s counsel, Abeni Muhammed, SAN, declared that his client was unlawfully excluded from the purported primary election in view of an existing Memorandum of Understanding, the basis of which he was returned by the panel set up by the party.

He added that the claimant immediately wrote a protest letter to the party on the purported primary election held on October 6, when he was out of the state and on a national assignment for the same party.

The presiding Judge, Justice Peter Lifu, declared that the court would not tolerate unnecessary technicalities and thereby fixed February 11 for judgement.

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Osun West PDP crisis: Court fixes  Feb 11 for judgement

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