The Osun State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has revealed that there is no court order restricting Senator Ademola Adeleke, the party’s flagbearer in the Osun gubernatorial election slated for Saturday, July 16, 2022.
Making this known via a press release signed by Ayodeji Areola, Osun PDP Publicity Secretary in Osogbo, on Wednesday, the party stated that the legal hitches had been laid to rest.
Areola noted that the interim order of injunction against the primary election of Osun PDP conducted by the National Working Committee which produced Senator Ademola Adeleke as the party’s candidate for the July 16th 2022 Osun gubernatorial election has automatically elapsed by operation of law.
The statement reads, “May we bring it to your attention that an interim ex-parte order was made by Justice Aderibigbe of the Ijebu-jesha Division of Osun State High Court on 4th March, 2022, which ordered that the list of Ward Excos, purportedly conducted by Adagunodo should be used for our State Congress, yet another judge of the Osun State High Court, Onibokun J. granted an order mandating the PDP to make use of the list of delegates produced at the Congresses conducted by the NWC of our Party.
“Our Party is law abiding and in view of the circumstance, the Party removed the Ward Excos, subject of the conflicting orders from the primary election. In another twist, the persons who purportedly instituted the action at the Ijebu-jesha Division went back to court to secure another ex-parte order of interim injunction against the candidature of Senator Ademola Adeleke.
“However, some of the persons whose names were listed as part of the Plaintiffs in the case appeared physically in court dissociating themselves from the suit. The said persons filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal and the appeal has now been entered at the Court of Appeal, Akure Division.
“With this event, the Court of Appeal is effectively in control of the matter. One needs not be in doubt that once a matter is before the appellate court, the trial court should hands-off and that was what happened today in court when our formidable team of lawyers stormed the Court to argue the issue out and at the end of the day, the case was adjourned indefinitely.
“Let me inform you gentlemen of the Press that we are not unaware of the misinformation being circulated by a tiny minority within Osun PDP supported by the APC agents that the order of interim injunction made by Aderibigbe operates indefinitely. That is far from the truth as that position will be preposterous and against logic, law and reason.
“An ex-parte order has a 7-day life span and unless expressly extended, it automatically vanishes after the 7-day period. In the case of PDP .V. ADAGUNODO in CA/AK/349/2020, the Court of Appeal has this to say on the life span of an ex-parte order…….’Interim orders have a life span and automatically expire by effluxion of time, in this case, 7 days, unless renewed by another 7 days as situation and circumstances permit’. The clear implication of the above cited rules of court is that an order made ex-parte shall automatically abate after seven days.
“The implication of the above position is that there is no court order disturbing our candidate any longer. We, therefore, call on all the good people of Osun State to rally round Senator Ademola Adeleke who emerged as the candidate of our great party at our Special State Congress held last week by voting for him en-masse so as to deliver the good people of Osun State from the wrecks and ruins of the APC administration.”
Also, the Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisation stated that Senator Ademola Adeleke has been officially recognised as the Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the forthcoming Osun governorship election.
Mallam Olawale Rasheed, the Director of Media and Strategy, Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisation made this known in a statement on Wednesday in Osogbo.
The statement said the court injunction granted by Justice Adeyinka Aderibigbe of Osun State High Court sitting in Ijebu-jesa had elapsed as the court had been robbed of jurisdiction following the filing of appeal at the Akure Division of the Court of Appeal.
The statement read, “The controversy on who flies the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) banner in the July 16 governorship poll was on Wednesday laid to rest as the order restraining the PDP and the electoral commission from recognising Senator Ademola Adeleke elapsed today with Justice Adeyinka Aderibigbe refusing to renew an order recognising the claim of one Dotun Babayemi to the governorship ticket.
“Babayemi had declined participation in the party primary organised by the National Working Committee (NWC) but had since been riding on an ex-parte order granted by the judge presiding over Ijebu-Jesa division of the Osun State High Court. Even after the NWC officially presented the certificate of returns to Senator Adeleke, Babayemi refused to recognise the party leadership.”
