An Ondo State High Court refused to grant a substitute candidate’s prayers to be declared the legitimate winner of the Okitipupa Constituency II seat of the House of Assembly.
James Ololade-Gbegudu won October 5, last year’s All Progressive Congress (APC) seat primaries, but the party replaced him with Sina Akinwunmi before the general election.
Mr Akinwunmi went on to win the election on March 9, and Mr Ololade-Gbegudu asked the court to get him the seat.
The court agreed that the defendant, Mr Akinwunmi, was not the candidate validly nominated for the APC, but refused to declare the winner to the plaintiff.
The court said that Mr. Ololade-Gbegudu won the primaries, but could not be declared the party’s rightful candidate in the election as it was within the powers of the party to present candidates ‘ names to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The defendants in the suit included the Chairman of the APC Ondo State, Ade Adetimehin, the Secretary of State of the party, Sina Alaye ; INEC, and Mr Akinwunmi, the elected legislator.
Mr. Ololade-Gbegudu had approached the court to seek an order to compel the party and INEC to recognize him as the constituency’s authentic APC candidate and not Mr. Akinwunmi, who won the primary party.
In delivering his judgment, which lasted more than two hours, Justice Olabode Adegbehingbe held that all evidence submitted by APC officials to the court, including the primary election result sheet adduced by the plaintiff’s counsel, Femi Emodamori, showed Mr Ololade-Gbegudu winning the ticket to the APC assembly.
Nevertheless, he said he could not grant the complainant’s other reliefs that the return certificate previously issued to Mr Akinwunmi would be withdrawn and issues to him. He said the court was unable to force the APC to recognize the complainant as its authentic poll candidate.
The court held that the primary election result sheet presented by the elected legislator was found to be a forged one and “not reliable, invalid, and irrelevant.”
The judge said section 87 (4) of the Electoral Act (as amended) did not mandate the party to forward names of Direct Primary election winners to INEC, adding that the party might choose not to forward such names as its candidates.
He further said the court could not apply Section 87(3) of the Act which only deals with indirect primary, noting that there was no authority to be cited on the aspect of winners of party’s direct primary whose names were not sent to INEC.
The judge also dismissed the objection of the defendants that Mr Gbegudu’s case was filed out of time and was status-barred, noting that the suit was brought on December 22, 2018, within the 14 days allowed by the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
Commenting on the verdict, counsel to the plaintiff, Mr Emmanuel, said his client would appeal the judgment.
He noted that the court affirmed his client as the winner of the primary election of October 5, 2018, witnessed by INEC officials.
Counsel to INEC, Bukola Durojaye, and that of APC, Tajudeen Oyerinde, expressed satisfaction with the judgment.
