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Multiple court judgements during the week reinstated Ladi Adebutu as the gubernatorial candidate of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun state, signaling a possible end to the crisis rocking the party. But some chieftains of the party are vowing not to abide with the verdicts. Assistant Editor, ‘Dare Odufowokan, examines the state of things in the troubled party ahead of the 2023 general elections.
Last Thursday, Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja affirmed the election of Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu as the lawful candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in next year’s governorship election in Ogun State. The judgement of the court brought relief to Adebutu and numerous other candidates of the opposition party whose names have been left out of the final list of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in October. The commission had cited ‘court order’ as its reason for ignoring the PDP flag-bearers.
Justice Ekwo, in affirming the election of Adebutu by his party, held that the plaintiff, Mr. Jimi Adebisi Lawal, failed to prove that the PDP breached its laws in selecting its flag bearer for the March 11, 2023 governorship poll. According to the judge, Lawal failed to provide reliable and credible evidence to support his case of electoral malpractice. Justice Ekwo accordingly dismissed the suit for being incompetent and lacking in merit. Lawal, with the suit, sought to keep Adebutu’s name out of INEC’s list of candidates for the 2023 general elections in the state.
Delivering Judgement, Justice Ekwo described Lawal as a “spoiler”, having joined the PDP in March from the All Progressives Congress (APC) and participated in governorship primary held in May. The court also held that the delegates list, which Lawal challenged, is the same list approved by the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). It added that it was the same list that was used during the primaries, which produced Adebutu as the governorship candidate of the opposition party.
Also, about five appeals that emanated from another High Court judgment of September 27, which nullified the nomination of Adebutu as the governorship candidate of the opposition party for the 2023 elections, have been resolved in his favour by various judges. These developments appeared to have cleared the way for him and others as validly elected candidates of the party. It is expected in many quarters that INEC will comply with the many court verdicts and enlist Adebutu and others as validly nominated candidates of the opposition PDP in Ogun state.
Following the controversies that trailed its primary elections last May, the PDP in Ogun had split into factions with different groups of candidates claiming to be the flag-bearers of the party. Not less than three chieftains of the party are laying claim to the governorship ticket of the opposition party. The quests for the party’s tickets became issues for litigations. Struggling to be declared the PDP candidate were Ladi Adebutu, Segun Showunmi and Jimi Lawal. However, the party’s national leadership recongnises Adebutu as the governorship candidate of the PDP.
Unlike Showunmi and other chieftains of the party who held a parallel elections at another venue last May and got declared as candidates of the PDP for the 2023 general elections in Ogun State, Lawal had contested the gubernatorial primary election with Adebutu at the same venue and lost to the Iperu-born politician. After his loss, he proceeded to court and challenged the emergence of Adebutu. He alleged that an invalid delegates list was fraudulently used by the PDP to conduct the primary election.
Lawal had prayed that the purported primary be cancelled and another conducted with the authentic ad hoc delegates. Delivering his verdict in the case, Justice O O Oguntoyin of the high court, on 27th September, dealt a great blow on the aspiration of Adebutu and other candidates of the PDPM in Ogun State when he nullified the results of all the primary elections conducted by the party in the state and directed the State Executive Committee of the PDP to conduct fresh primaries within 14 days.
A faction of the PDP in the state promptly conducted the court-ordered rerun primaries across the state, and declared Otunba Lawal as the party’s governorship candidate ahead of the 2023 general elections. the faction claimed that the re-run, in line with court judgment, was held at DLK events centre in Abeokuta, while the National Assembly and State House of Assembly primaries were held in the various constituencies in the state. The Financial Secretary of the party, Bola Ademosu, who led other members of the State Executive Committee to conduct the court-ordered rerun, said Lawal emerged gubernatorial candidate with 456 votes.
But the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP a disclaimer sent to INEC by the PDP National Chairman, Sen. Iyorchia Ayu, dissociated itself from fresh primary election and Lawal’s nomination. Lawal was also promptly suspended alongside four others by the Ogun State chapter of the PDP for “organising an illegal primary.” The developments further compounded the confusion rocking the Ogun State chapter of the opposition PDP even as stakeholders looked up to the judiciary for judgments in various litigations.
Adebutu wins again
But while delivering judgment in an appeal filed by the PDP, Justice Folasade Ojo of the appeal court ruled that the lower court was wrong in its judgment as only the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP is vested with the power to conduct primaries. The judges promptly set aside a judgement of the Federal High Court in Abeokuta ordering the PDP to conduct fresh primaries in Ogun State. The appeal court gave the order on Monday in Ibadan. Justice O O Oguntoyin of the high court had on 27 September ordered the State Executive Committee of the PDP to conduct the fresh primaries within 14 days.
The court delivered the judgement in a suit filed by three members of the party, Taiwo Olabode-Idris, Kehinde Akala, and Ayinde Monsuri against the PDP governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu, and INEC contesting the authenticity of the delegates’ lists used to conduct the primaries. But on Monday, Justice Folasade Ojo, in a unanimous ruling of the appellate court, stated that the lower court was wrong in its judgment as only the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP is vested with the power to conduct the party’s primaries.
Another appeal court judge, Nimpar Yargata, said the trial court fell into error by nullifying the primaries which produced the governorship candidate of the party, Mr Adebutu and all other candidates of the party; the primaries having been conducted by the NWC of the party. Justice Yargata further said Mr Olabode-Idris and others who instituted the case at the lower court were not aspirants and therefore had no locus to challenge the outcome of the primaries. The judge reiterated that only the NWC of the party has the power to conduct primaries as spelt out in Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution.
Days earlier, The Federal High Court sitting in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, declared the purported governorship re-run primary election organised by some members of the state’s chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), led by Mr. Jimi Adebisi Lawal as illegal, unconstitutional and void. The suit filed by the party and Oladipupo Adebutu with number FHC/AB/CS/220/2022 against Mr. Lawal and others came after the rerun primaries held on October 17, 2022, in clear disobedience to the PDP’s guidelines and provision of the 2022 Electoral Act.
In the judgment delivered by Hon. Justice Akintayo Aluko, all three questions formulated in the Plaintiffs’ Originating Summons were resolved in favour of the PDP and Adebutu. The court declared that the purported gubernatorial rerun primary election of the PDP in Ogun State conducted on October 17, 2022, was not conducted in compliance with the orders made by the Federal High Court, Abeokuta Division in Suit No: FHC/AB/CS/83/2022 between Prince Adesegun Seriki and Ors v INEC and Ors and Suit No: FHC/AB/CS/87/2022 between Taiwo Olabode Idris and Ors v PDP and Ors both of which were delivered on September 27, 2022.
The court further declared that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) cannot validly accept the name of Mr. Lawal as the candidate of the PDP in Ogun State for the 2023 governorship election as the purported re-run governorship primary election is illegal, unconstitutional and void. Recall that Lawal had approached the Federal High Court in Abeokuta with the application for a writ of Mandamus for the purpose of compelling INEC to accept the result of the rerun primary in suit No: FHC/AB/CS/222/2022 filed by Taiwo Olabode Idris and others (Jimi LAWAL’s cohorts) against INEC, which was struck out by the court on November 3, 2022.
Fresh threats
But some aggrieved chieftains of the PDP in the state have vowed not to accept the verdicts confirming Adebutu as the governorship candidate of the party without further fights. The Nation gathered that there are plans to institute fresh litigations against the aspiration of the PDP candidate. it was specifically learnt that the camp of Jimi Lawal is determined to snatch the governorship ticket from Adebutu ahead of the 2023 gubernatorial election in the state in spite of the support the national leadership of the party currently gives Adebutu and his faction of the party.
Last Thursday, Jimi Lawal’s faction announced its dissatisfaction with the judgements and vowed to challenge the judgment of a Federal High Court in Abuja, which dismissed his suit, at the Court of Appeal. It was also gathered that the faction intends to similarly challenge the order of an Appellate at the Supreme Court as part of its efforts to stop Adebutu from contesting the next governorship election in the Gateway State. Already, reacting to the dismissal of his suit, Lawal has announced that he received the Abuja verdict with mixed feelings.
His position on the judgment of Justice Inyang Edem Ekwo was contained in a statement issued by his campaign organization. “The Jimi Adebisi Lawal Campaign Organization (JALCO) received with mixed feelings the news of the judgment just delivered this Thursday by the Federal High Court, Abuja, in respect of the governorship primary election of the Ogun state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) held on the 25th of May, 2022.
“Although the judgment went against the issues, facts and the law, we are comforted by the fact that our judicial system allows for an appeal to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. We do intend to exercise our right of appeal without any delay. We are strong in our resolve to test the Constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), its Guidelines for Primary Elections and the Electoral Act, 2022. If for nothing else, it will help to deepen our jurisprudence and democracy.
“Flowing from the above, our legal teams are taking steps to appeal the judgment immediately. While we go through the judicial process, we wish to urge our faithful delegates, party members, supporters, leaders and elders to remain resolute and steadfast, knowing full well that though the wheel of justice grinds slowly, it is steady and sure. No matter how long it takes, the truth shall prevail!,” the statement said.
Some analysts are of the opinion that such appeal as being considered by Lawal and his group may prevent the inclusion of Adebutu and others names in INEC’s final list ahead of the general elections. “It is still not yet uhuru for PDP in Ogun state as long as some of its chieftains are willing to approach the court again. INEC may refuse to do anything about the matters until all cases are expended with. And who knows when that will be? Elections are drawing nearer and other parties are preparing while PDP is in and out of coursts,’ Alfred Bekederemo, Deputy State Representative of Voters’ Right Agenda (VRA), said.
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