The Supreme Court has affirmed Gboyega Oyetola as the authentic winner of the 2018 Osun State governorship election.

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ademola Adeleke, lost his appeal before the apex court during its ruling on Friday, July 5, 2019.

Adeleke and the PDP had filed an appeal before the court after they lost to Oyetola and his All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Court of Appeal.

In May 2019, the Court of Appeal had upheld Oyetola’s victory after an election tribunal initially ruled, in March, that Adeleke won the election.

The appellate court had ruled that the alleged absence of Justice Peter Obiorah, who read the election tribunal’s majority judgement, during a previous sitting when two witnesses testified and tendered exhibits nullified the tribunal’s judgement.

During Friday’s ruling, Justice Bode Rhodes- Vivour who delivered the majority judgment supported by five of the seven-justice of the Apex court panel held that it is settled law that when the rightly constituted panel of a court does not seat the activities carried out by that panel is a nullity.

The Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad and three other members consented to the lead majority judgment.

Details later…