Why We Can’t Speak On Osun Tribunal Verdict –INEC

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it will be prejudicial to speak on the outcome of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Osogbo which overturned the victory of governor Ademola Adeleke at the July 16, 2022 governorship polls.
LEADERSHIP reports that the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate Adegboyega Oyetola had petitioned the victory of Adeleke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on two grounds of over-voting and certificate forgery.
The tribunal, while noting that APC’s claim of overvoting was not complete, agreed that there was evidence of over voting in the July 16 guber election.
The Tribunal held that “after deducting invalid votes due to overvoting, Adegboyega Oyetola scored 314, 931 while Governor Ademola Adeleke scored 290, 666.”
It also held that Adeleke is academically qualified to contest as Osun governor.
However when contacted yesterday by LEADERSHIP for response to the verdict, national commissioner and chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, INEC, Barr. Festus Okoye, said the judicial process must be allowed to run its full course.
LEADERSHIP enquiries were on the grounds of overvoting during the polls and how easy it was for politicians to compromise Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) machines.
Okoye while speaking with LEADERSHIP said, “The judicial process must be allowed to run its full course.
“The governorship election tribunal is the Court of first instance in election petition proceedings. The aggrieved party in this instance has indicated a desire to appeal against the judgement. It will be prejudicial to prejudge the outcome of the appeal.”
He added that it is more prudent to await the outcome of the appeal.