Osun poll: Omisore hires 7 SANs, submits 815-page petition to tribunal

Osun poll: Omisore hires 7 SANs, submits 815-page petition to tribunal

Standard-bearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the August 9, 2014 governorship poll, Senator Iyiola Omisore, on Thursday, finally filed 815-page petition at the Election Petition Tribunal, to challenge the declaration of Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the winner of the poll.

Accompanied by the chairman of the PDP in the state, Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa, Omisore, who arrived at the premises of the State High Court around 4.05 pm, headed for the office behind one of the court’s buildings, where the secretary of the Election Petition Tribunal, Mr Mohammed Alli received his entourage.

Nigerian Tribune sighted him alongside the state’s PDP chairman, signing the petition which were in three bundles of 815 pages booklets, before they were handed over to the tribunal’s secretary.

Speaking during a chat with journalists after submission of the petition, Omisore contended that, “with the submission of this petition, I would soon be declared the original winner of the August 9, 2014 governorship election in Osun, with lawful votes cast by the people of this state, unlike the rigged and manipulated figures released by the INEC, which declared the candidate of APC as the winner.”

According to him, “there was huge connivance between the INEC, OYES cadets, who they used as presiding officers and some policemen, who were bribed and bought over to chase our agents out of polling units and centres. This development indicated that there was no transparency, fairness in the conduct of the poll in some identified areas in the state.”

Responding to a question on his confidence in the Election Petition Tribunal to dispense unbiased justice, considering the controversy that characterised the tribunal, which sacked former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola’s government, Omisore simply stated, “as far as we are concerned, that tribunal that sent Oyinlola away, headed by Justice Salami, paid dearly for their misdeeds. I am sure that they must have learnt their lesson.”

He emphasised that, “I believe that the judges would be fair and dispassionate in the judicious dispensation of justice according to the sacred facts and the will of the people. I think the lesson learnt by Salami and his co-travelers should be instructive enough that the peoples’ wish should not be compromised on the altar of money and other illicit inducements”.

Giving more details on his legal team, Omisore, said “we have secured the services of seven Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) and hordes of other lawyers and I am sure we have a very good case and this would make the jobs of our legal luminaries easier. We are confident of victory because of the careless rigging, daylight robbery and vicious manipulation, which permeated the electoral process. People would be shocked of revelations that would come out of this proceedings.