Court insists Obanoyen is Owo/Ose PDP Rep candidate

A Federal High Court sitting in Akure, the Ondo State capital, has again dismissed a stay of execution application filed by Dr Bode Ayorinde to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national secretariat from executing the judgment of the court which declared Sodiq Obanoyen as the party’s authentic candidate for Owo/Ose Federal Constituency of the state.

Justice Abdulmutalib Dogo, who delivered the verdict, directed INEC to execute the judgment and recognise Obanoyen as PDP’s candidate in next week’s National Assembly election.

Justice Dogo, on January 22, restrained Ayorinde, a sitting Federal lawmaker, from parading himself as the PDP candidate for Owo/Ose Federal Constituency.

He held that Obanoyen scored the highest votes cast during the party’s primary of October 3, last year, with 107 votes against Ayorinde’s 72 votes.

Justice Dogo also directed the national secretariat of the PDP to submit Obanoyen’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the authentic candidate of the party for Ose/Owo Federal Constituency election coming up on February 16.

Obanoyen had won the House of Representatives PDP primary for Owo/Ose Federal Constituency in Owo last October, having scored 107 votes while Ayorinde polled 73 votes.

But the party sent Ayorinde’s name to the INEC as its candidate for the election.

Not satisfied with the development, Obanoyen challenged the action of the party in court.

The suit had the PDP, the chairman of Ondo State chapter of the PDP, Mr. Clement Faboyede, Ayorinde and the INEC as the first, second, third and fourth defendants.

The third defendant’s (Ayorinde’s) lawyer Tolu Babaleye prayed the court to uphold the disqualification of the plaintiff on the ground that he did not resign his appointment as a legislative aide to Deputy Senate President Ike Ekeremadu before obtaining the form to contest.

The lawyer noted that the action was against the party’s election guidelines, but the court struck out the prayers.

The plaintiff’s legal team, led by Remi Olatubora, presented the evidence that showed the appropriate resignation of his client to the court.