Osun Appeal panel: PDP rejects Justice Oyewole

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Working Committee (NWC) has vehemently rejects the inclusion of Honourable Justice Joseph Olubunmi K. Oyewole as a member of the Osun state Governorship Election Appeal Tribunal.

The party, through its national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said its position was based on the fact that Justice Oyewole has strong connections with the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is an interested party in the appeal.

Ologbondiyan said the party has already petitioned the President of the Court, objecting to the inclusion of Justice Oyewole in the appeal panel alleging the likelihood of his being biased against the person of our candidate, Senator Ademola Adeleke and the PDP.

“He is an indigene of Osun state and he had served as a High Court Judge of Lagos state and had thus served under the administration of Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu,(the national leader of the APC) while he (Tinubu) was the governor of Lagos state.

“When the seat of the Chief Judge of Osun state became vacant, some years back, upon the retirement of Hon Justice G.O Ojo, Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu insisted on having his anointed candidate, Hon Justice J.O.K Oyewole on the judiciary of Osun state at all cost.

“It took the courageous intervention of the then Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloma Murktar to prevail that the most senior judge of Osun state judiciary should be so appointed”.

The PDP further argued that “When a seat became vacant at the Court of Appeal, the name of Hon Justice Oyewole was pushed forward by Senator Tinubu using the slot of Osun state and thus Justice Oyewole became Justice of the Court of Appeal.”

The PDP also stated that Justice Oyewole has a strong connection with the APC and its leader Senator Ahmed Tinubu, adding that he should not sit as a panel member for a governorship election dispute between the PDP and the APC.

“Moreover, Hon Justice J.O.K Oyewole is from Osun state. The instant appeal is over the decision of the Osun state Governorship Tribunal. Given his connections with the APC it will be most unsafe to allow Justice J.O.K Oyewole to sit on the Appeal Panel”, it said stressing it is not assured justice would be done with Justice Oyewole as a member of the panel.

“As a party, we do not have confidence in Hon Justice J.O.K Oyewole. So the PDP vehemently objects to his inclusion, as he is likely to be biased against our party and our candidate, Senator Ademola Adeleke”.

Ologbondiyan demanded the president of the court of appeal to immediately replace Hon Justice J.O.K Oyewole with another justice that has no affiliation with Osun state, out of the over 90 eminent justices of the court of appeal.

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