Osun 2022: Senator Adeleke Remains The Authentic Party Flagbearer, Says PDP Publicity Secretary

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State, has reiterated that Senator Ademola Adeleke remains the authentic flagbearer of the party in the coming July 16 gubernatorial election in the state.

The party said apart from the fact Senator Ademola has been officially presented the Certificate of returns by PDP National Working Committee, the claims on whom to become the authentic candidate laid to rest as the order restraining the PDP and the electoral commission from recognising Senator Ademola Adeleke lapsed today with Justice Adeyinka Aderibigbe refusing to renew an order recognising the claim of Prince Dotun Babayemi to the governorship ticket.

The Party made these known through its
Publicity Secretary Hon Ayodeji Areola at a press conference addressed in Osogbo, Osun State capital.

The party however warned those it described as agents of disinformation over recent legal development within the party to desist affirming that ex-parte order last only for seven days and that legal conundrums on Osun PDP ticket has been resolved in favour of Senator Ademola Adeleke.

The party declared that based on what happened today, the Court of Appeal has taken over the matter and “there is no court order disturbing our candidate any longer”

“It is my delight to inform you that some of the legal conundrums hindering the progress of Osun PDP has today been laid to rest as the interim order of mandatory injunction against the primary election of Osun PDP conducted by the National Working Committee of our great Party which produced Senator Ademola Jackson Nurudeen Adeleke as the PDP’s candidate for the July 16th 2022 Osun Governorship election has automatically abated by operation of law.

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 appeallate 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 efflusion 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.”, the party spokesperson said.