Opposition Party Hails Judiciary Over Verdict In Police, ELectoral Commission’s Suit

The Osun State chapter of the National Rescue Mission (NRM) has expressed confidence in the judiciary as a template and last hope for the common man, citing its verdict in the case instituted against the police by the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC).

The commission had dragged the police before a Federal High Court, presided over by Justice AA Demi-Ajayi in Osogbo, over the sealing off of the commission’s state headquarters, preceding the conduct of the 17th February 2022 local government elections in the state.

A release signed and made available to newsmen in Osogbo by the chairman of the party, Dr Gbenga Afeni, noted that the court’s award of N100 million against the police will serve as a deterrent against impunity by law enforcement agencies.

Afeni, who insisted that OSSIEC, under the leadership of Barrister Hashim Abioye, ensured due process in compliance with the Electoral Act of 2022, noted that his due diligence informed the participation of many political parties in the election.

The party chairman, however, demanded a share of the #100M awarded to the police, adding that the political parties had also shared in the trauma caused by the illegal sealing off of the secretariat at the peak of election preparation.

His words: “It is important and imperative that the commission give us the political parties that participated in the local government election of 17th February 2022 our own share of the one hundred million fine, because we suffered the pain and panic most”.

Dr Afeni, while commending OSSIEC Chairman Hashim Abioye for pursuing the issue legally and legitimately, instead of instigating the electorate to cause chaos in the state or abandoning the election as inconclusive, charged politicians alike to seek the exact cause whenever aggrieved.