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Tag: Gboyega Oyetola

  • Verdict on Osun governorship poll cannot stand, says Aregbesola

    Former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has described the judgment of the Election Petition Tribunal last Friday, which nullified the election of Governor Gboyega Oyetola as very strange and unknown to law.

    Aregbesola, in a statement by his Media Adviser, Mr. Sola Fasure, said the report of the split judgment came to every watcher of political events in the state as a rude shock.

    In the statement entitled: “This judgment cannot stand,” the former governor said the people of the state and the government have the highest regards for the judiciary and would keep having high regards for the revered institution.

    Aregbesola, however, regretted that the tribunal’s majority judgment was strange to law and common sense.

    He said the majority judgment, as delivered by their Lordship, did not support the cause of electoral justice and might constitute the death knell for properly conducted elections.

    Aregbesola said the people rejected the majority judgment and believe that it would not stand scrutiny at the appellate court.

    The statement noted that the majority judgment, which held that the rerun election conducted in seven polling units on the September 27, 2018, was illegal, null and void, was equally shocking and amounts to a travesty of justice.

    He said the government would appeal the judgment, adding that the verdict would be upturned.

    The former governor wondered why elections in 17 polling would be annulled when there was no evidence of any act known to render them null and void in an election petition such as over-voting, non-accreditation, ballot box stuffing among others.

    Aregbesola contended that concern for substantive justice should have dictated that since the results from the 17 units were duly signed and adjudged by INEC to be authentic, there should not have been any controversy over there validity.

    He lamented that the tribunal has effectively disenfranchised the legitimate voters in the 17 polling units and rendered the election undemocratic.

    The statement said: “In nullifying the elections in the 17 polling units, the majority judgment predicated it on what is regarded as ‘substantial non-compliance’ with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010. The said non-compliance, according to the judgment, borders on the failure of INEC’s appointed presiding officers to record accreditation and ballot accounting on the result forms in the 17 polling units.

    “There was no evidence of any act known to render election null and void in an election petition such as over voting, non-accreditation, ballot box stuffing etc.

    “This much was highlighted in the dissenting judgment of the Chairman of the Tribunal in disagreeing with the majority decision.

    Read also: Osun youths protest against tribunal judgement

    “It must be noted that APC and its candidate were not accused of any electoral malfeasance in the 17 polling units. Rather, INEC, a common agent of PDP and APC (and indeed, all the political parties), which neither of the parties has control over was merely accused of not complying with its manual for the election, when the presiding officers appointed for the election failed to make the entries.

    “Therefore, the most relevant question one would pose here is: should the tribunal allow APC to suffer as a result of the mistakes or omissions occasioned by the INEC staff? Certainly, no!”

    The statement added: “Equally shocking are the reasons advanced by the two justices. They advanced the proposition that elections in the seven polling units were cancelled by the state collation officer. This was not the case. There were no elections in the seven polling units, and if there was any, the onus was on the petitioners. This onus was not discharged in anyway as no results was tendered.

    “The state collation officer in compliance with the margin of lead principle rightly reasoned that the outcomes of the elections could not be determined without conducting polls in the affected elections. Hence the commission’s decision to conduct supplementary elections in line with these principles.”

    The ex-governor urged APC members, “supporters and lovers of justice, who have been outraged by this verdict, to be calm and unruffled”.

    He insisted that the verdict cannot stand.

    “As they say in law, you cannot build something on nothing,”Aregbesola said.

     

    Youths protest panel’s judgment as Oyetola preaches peace

    A Group of youths under the Osun Concerned Citizens yesterday protested judgment of the Osun Election Petitions Tribunal on the September 22, 2018 state governorship poll.

    Last Friday, a three-man tribunal ruled that the People’s Democratic Party’s governorship candidate, Senator Ademola Adeleke, was the winner of the poll.

    During the peaceful protest, the youths, in their hundreds, marched round major streets of Osogbo, the state capital, from Ayetoro junction via Old Garage and Okefia to Olaiya area.

    The youths, who carried placards with various inscriptions like “Oyetola remain our governor”, “We voted for Governor Oyetola”, “We cannot be intimidated” among others, caused a traffic gridlock for many hours.

    Addressing the crowd, the group’s General Secretary, Comrade Yaya Ademola, said the protest was aimed at sensitising the people about issues associated with the governorship election.

    Ademola, who noted the lacuna in the tribunal’s ruling, was optimistic that the Court of Appeal would overturn the tribunal judgment.

    He said any attempt to distort the majority votes would be  resisted.

    But, Governor Gboyega Oyetola, while addressing the protesters, urged the people to keep the peace as they await the final judicial pronouncement on the governorship election.

    He said the people, while expressing their views on the tribunal judgment, should exercise caution, adding that he believes in the judicial process.

    A statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Adeniyi Adesina, quoted the governor as saying: “I believe that the judicial process should be allowed to take its course. I have hope that we shall be vindicated and our mandate, which the people freely gave us, will be reaffirmed.

    “Let us all be law-abiding as we keep hope alive.”

  • Can Osun tribunal majority verdict stand appeal test?

    Does Section 140 of the Electoral Act permit a tribunal to declare a winner by calculating figures after cancelling results? No, says Osun State Election Petition Tribunal’s Chairman Justice Muhammad Sirajo. JOSEPH JIBUEZE reviews his dissenting verdict.

    ALL eyes are on the Court of Appeal as the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State and Governor Gboyega Oyetola are set to challenge the majority judgment of the Election Petitions Tribunal which declared Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate Senator Ademola Adeleke winner of last September’s governorship election.

    APC Publicity Secretary Kunle Oyatomi said the tribunal’s decision cannot stand “superior legal scrutiny”.

    Oyetola reiterated his party’s position, saying there was no cause for alarm as he was still in charge.

    A statement by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Wole Oyebamiji, said: “The administration of His Excellency, Mr Adegboyega Oyetola, Governor, State of Osun, wishes to assure the people that the judgment of the Election Tribunal has been put on appeal.”

    The majority verdict

    The tribunal consisted of three members: Justice Muhammad Sirajo (chairman), Justice Peter Obiorah (member I) and Justice Adegboye Gbolagunte (member II).

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Adegboyega Isiaka Oyetola and All Progressives Congress (APC) were the respondents.

    Justice Obiorah delivered the 223-page majority judgment. He returned Adeleke as Osun Governor-elect.

    His decision was based on the ground that the rerun of last September 27 was unlawful or invalid as the Returning Officer (RO) had no power to cancel results in seven polling units across three Local Government Areas where the rerun took place.

    The majority decision believed the petitioners’ pleadings that there was no ground for the rerun.

    The majority verdict deducted votes for both the APC and PDP in other polling units across some LGAs on the ground that there were non-compliance with the Electoral Act and that the non-compliance affected the outcome.

    The tribunal, in the majority judgment, also cancelled results from 17 polling units on grounds of substantial non-compliance with Electoral Act.

    The non-compliance, according to Justice Obiorah, was INEC’s failure to fill Form EC8A and some alleged alterations or forgery on the form.

    Form EC8A documents accreditation and ballot accounting. There is a column in the Form where INEC is required to enter those figures.

    However, the majority judgment also concluded that even if the rerun was not discounted or invalidated or was allowed to stay, Adeleke would still have won after those deductions in the other 23-50 units in other parts of the state.

    But, was the majority judgment right to have cancelled the rerun and deducted votes of both parties?

    That’s the fulcrum of the minority judgment and the only two issues on which Justice Sirajo disagreed with the majority judgment.

    The minority judgment

    Justice Sirajo said he had the privilege of reading the majority judgment.

    “I participated actively and contributed immensely by personally writing some portions of the judgment just delivered,” he said.

    He, however, disagreed with the decisions and conclusions reached in the majority judgment.

    Justice Sirajo differed on the aspects which border on allegations of non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, particularly the allegation of non-recording of columns of result sheets designed to document accreditation and ballot accounting.

    He added: “I also disagree with the majority decision and conclusion on the lawfulness or validity of the re-run election of 27/09/2018. Other than these two substantive issues, I adopt the entire review of the pleadings and the evidence…”

    Giving his reasons, Justice Sirajo noted that the petitions challenged the cancellation in seven polling units across four LGAs – Orolu, Ife North, Ife South and Osogbo.

    The petitions had contended that that the RO lacked the legal right to cancel the result of the seven polling units.

    Justice Sirajo said the question was whether the RO had the power to order a rerun .

    He held: “By virtue of the INEC Guidelines, paragraph 44(n) thereof, the Manuals of Election Officials 2018 made pursuant to the powers donated to the first respondent (INEC) by the Electoral Act, the RO has the vires to order a rerun where the margin of win between the two leading candidates is less than the total number of registered voters where elections were cancelled or did not hold.”

    The judge referred to the case of Faleke vs INEC (2016), in which the Supreme Court held: …The first respondent was correct when it declared the election of 21/11/2015 inconclusive on the ground that the margin of win between the two front-runners at the election was less than the total number of registered voters in 91 affected polling units where elections were cancelled.

    According to Justice Sirajo, with regards to the polling units where election did not hold, the RO’s power to order a rerun “need no further scrutiny”.

    Having held that the RO had the power to declare an election inconclusive and order a supplementary election, the judge added: “It is in the exercise of that power that the governorship election in Osun State was declared inconclusive and a rerun ordered.

    “In the final analysis, I hold that the rerun election conducted on September 27, 2018 is valid. I also hold that the cases of Doma vs INEC and Ikpeazu vs Otti do not apply in the instant petition as the petitioners have failed to show that there was cancellation of election and who did the cancellation.

    “Merely declaring an election inconclusive does not necessarily imply that an election was cancelled.”

    Non-recording of columns in result sheets

    The petitioners had argued that non-recording of items in the result sheets was to shield the wrongful entries made as to the votes of the parties and the result of accreditation.

    Justice Sirajo found that none of the witnesses called by the petitioners bothered to explain in their evidence-in-chief the nature of the non-compliance and how it substantially affected the result of the election.

    He noted that the only grouse the petitioners had with the results in the 23 polling units was that the data for accreditation and ballot papers were not entered in the Forms EC8A, and as a result of this omission they want the results of the affected units cancelled.

    This, he said, is even as their witnesses said they had no problem with the votes credited to the parties in the result sheets.

    According to the judge, there was “abundant evidence” that there was accreditation in all the 23 polling units as admitted by the petitioners’ witnesses.

    Consequence of INEC’s failure to record accreditation columns

    “What then is the consequence of INEC’s failure to record the columns for accreditation and ballot accounting in the result sheets for those 23 polling units?,” Justice Sirajo asked.

    In answering the question, he referred to Section 139 (1) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

    It says: An election shall not be liable to be invalidated by reason of non-compliance with the provisions of this Act if it appears to the Election Tribunal/or Court that the election was conducted substantially in according with the principle of this Act and that the non-compliance did not affect not affect substantially the result of the election.

    Justice Sirajo emphasised that the process of an election in a polling unit begins with accreditation, casting of votes, sorting and counting of ballot papers, announcement of scores for political parties, recording of scores in the appropriate form together with the figures of accredited voters and account of ballot papers.

    “It is clear from the above provision that it is not every non-compliance or deviation with the provisions of the Act that will lead to invalidation of an election.

    “The framers of the Electoral Act are fully conscious of the human fallibility. That is why the statute did not expect and call for absolute compliance with its provisions.

    “The degree of compliance required to validate an election is substantial compliance. For any non-compliance to have the effect of invalidating an election, such non-compliance must in itself be substantial and must have substantially affected the result of the election,” he said.

    According to the judge, a petitioner who alleges non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act must not only assert and establish it, he must prove to the Tribunal’s satisfaction how the non-compliance affected the result of the election in the polling unit or constituency concerned.

    “In this petition, it is not in dispute that about 90 per cent of the processes involved in the conduct of election in a polling unit have been fully complied with.

    “Voters were duly accredited before they cast their votes. At the conclusion of voting, ballot papers were sorted out and counted.

    “The presiding officers announced the votes scored by the parties, entered the figures in the result sheets and signed. The party agents counter-signed the result sheets and collected copies,” Justice Sirajo said.

    According to the judge, the only non-compliance is that the presiding officers did not record the columns for accreditation and ballot accounting data.

    “There is no complaint that the election in those 23 polling units was afflicted by any irregularity.

    “I am satisfied that there is non-compliance by way of omission to record the columns for accreditation and ballot accounting in the 23 polling units out of the 3,010 polling units in Osun State,” he said.

    Justice Sirajo added: “I hold that the omission to record the colums for accreditation and ballot paper accounting on the result sheets, though a non-compliance, did not amount to substantial non-compliance.”

    He noted that the petitioners merely “chorusing” that the results sheets were “doctored”, “mutilated” or “altered” “does not amount to demonstration of how the non-compliance affected the result of the election.”

    His verdict

    Justice Sirajo held that the net result of his analysis is that the petitioners failed to show how the non-compliance with recording of the columns substantially affected the results of the election in the polling units as to lead to their cancellation.

    “In the final analysis, I hold that this specie of non-compliance is not substantial, and that even if it is substantial, ihasnot been proved that it substantially affected the result of the Osun State Governorship election held on 22/09/2018 and 27/09/2018.

    “Let me conclude by saying that even if this specie of non-compliance is found to be substantial as to affect  substantially the result of the election, the tribunal does not have the vires to subtract the votes affected by the non-compliance from the scores of the candidates and proceed to declare the candidate with the highest number of votes as the winner of the election.”

    Justice Sirajo was of the view that Section 140 of the Electoral Act 2010 does not permit the court to declare a winner by calculating figures after cancelling results.

    Read also: Osun: Ebora Owu finds mojo

    He held that the court can only order a supplementary election where it is convinced there were irregularities, as only INEC can declare the winner of an election.

    His words: “The last remark is informed by the provisions of Section 140 (2) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), which gives the Tribunal the power to only order a fresh or rerun election where non-compliance is established…

    “It is the law that where an allegation of non-compliance is proved, the Tribunal is only permitted to nullify the election and order a supplementary election in order not to disenfranchise voters in the affected areas in line with the principles of the Act.”

    Section 140 (2) provides: Where an election or tribunal or court nullifies an election on the ground that the person who obtained the highest votes at the election was not qualified to contest the election, or that the election was marred by substantial irregularities or non-compliance with the provisions of this Act, the election tribunal or court should not declare the person with the second highest votes or any other person as elected, but shall order for a fresh election.

    In the words of Justice Sirajo, “this is a mandatory provision that cannot be circumvented by the Tribunal or court.”

    He added: “The allegation we are dealing with here is allegation of non-compliance and it falls squarely under this sub-section of Section 140 of the Electoral Act.

    “There is no escaping from this sub-section and its effect, so long as the allegation is predicated on non-compliance.

    “I only need to add that an order for fresh or supplementary election referred to in Section 140 (2) quoted above can only be made where it is expressly asked for by the petitioners as the Tribunal is not a charity.

    “Having resolved these two important issues against the petitioners, I hold that the petition has no merit and same is hereby dismissed by me. I award the sum of N200,000 cost to each of the second and third respondents,” Justice Sirajo held.

    An expert’s view

    A law lecturer at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Dr Misbau Lateef, said he was looking forward to the Court of Appeal decision.

    In an article published on loyalnigerianlawyer.com, he writes: “In my own personal analogy, this is how I treated that error of majority in deducting votes merely because INEC did not fill certain columns or even altered certain columns of Form EC8A, an act regarded by the Majority as non-compliance.

    “Pleadings of the Petitioner which swayed the majority judgment to deduct votes for both APC and PDP in some 23-50 units is like someone contesting the legitimacy of the birth or birthday of a child simply because certain important columns in the birth register in the hospital were not filled by the hospital officials, although the official gave a duplicate copy of birth certificate to the parents which contained all details.

    “Thus, if the doctor who took delivery, the matron who nursed the mother and baby, the mother of the child, the father and others present at birth are unanimous on the fact of birth and the date of birth, will failure of the hospital official to enter certain important columns – even if it’s date of birth – in the register of birth in the hospital amount to a substantial non-compliance with registration of birth, such that it can defeat the above unanimous evidence of everyone concerning the birth and date of birth of the child? No!!!!

    “Finally, I seriously think the majority judgment was wrong on all fronts. They ought not to have deducted votes as the alleged non-compliance was not substantial and was not proved to be substantial by the Petitioner in line with s.139 (2) of the E.A noted above.

    “They also ought not to have cancelled the rerun on the erroneous ground that the RO cancelled elections in those seven units across three LGs, when there was no such categorical proof before them…,” Lateef said.

    Too early to celebrate

    Legal observers have asked PDP supporters not to celebrate until they cross  Court of Appeal and Supreme Court hurdles.

    They point to the Taraba experience in which huge celebrations trailed the tribunal’s sacking of PDP’s Darius Ishaku and return of Senator Aisha Alhassan as governor, only for Alhassan to lose at the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court, both of which held that the lower Tribunal grossly misdirected itself by nullifying Ishaku’s victory.

  • Rogue Arithmetics

    His name is Peter Obiora, not Obi. He is not a former governor or the man who stumbled on his way to be vice president. He is a judge, and he read the lead judgment over the governorship poll that declared Gboyega Oyetola as the governor of Osun State. Some news organs that had fallen under the spell of the former governor of the  effeminate voice had spelt the judge’s name as though he were the politician. Maybe they thought him one given the tendentious tenor of his verdict.

    This Obiora reminds me of a book of logic that psychologists, philosophers, educationists and lawyers have read since Robert Thouless published it in 1930. I first read Straight and Crooked Thinking after I completed my School Certificate because I was fascinated by the audacity of its title and it rested imperiously on my father’s bookshelf. I was to encounter it later at the University of Ife in the hands of law students who informed me it was a recommended text. The idea, I gathered, was to apprise law students of the wherewithal to navigate dishonest ways of reasoning and fortify their logical senses.

    From Justice Obiora verdict, I wonder if he ever read Thouless. If he read it, I wonder if he understood him. Maybe he could understand but could not withstand it except by capsizing its logic in the exercise of his work as a judge. Obiora inoculated himself against the august notions of Thouless and embraced illogic. He would have flunked out of a class that required straight thinking, and a crooked turn of mind informed his verdict.

    In the first place, he based his verdict on two main planks.  One of them nullified the rerun election after the number of cancelled votes exceeded the difference between PDP’s Demola Adeleke’s tally and Oyetola’s. Adeleke had the edge but the returning officer, based on INEC’s guidelines ordered  a rerun. It happened and it favoured Oyetola. The dancing Senator’s feet turned sore and he could only walk to the court in protest. This was not only tendentious, it was a judgment in disenfranchisement. The logic that Obiora could not withstand is the reason we had rerun elections in a few states last weekend, including in Plateau, Benue and Sokoto states. INEC did the right thing because polls are about the people. For instance, Simon Lalong won in Plateau State even though it was mathematically impossible for his septuagenarian rival – Jerry Boy – to catch up. But the governor submitted himself to the process. It is a process that Obiora and his folks did not understand. It is called the rule of law and it is one of the planks of democracy if it is executed in good faith. Aminu Tambuwal of the PDP won by a hair’s margin, but he subjected himself through the process. That is the logic alien to Obiora.

    The returning officer had the right to give democracy a full throttle. Obiora thought it was better to be arbitrary. The verdict also did something that Thouless frowned upon and he called it cherry picking evidence. According to the 273 page judgment, there was what we called in high school ‘jomo jomo to the answer’ – that is, an arbitrary leap to the mathematical conclusion.

    It seems, in a manner is speaking, he was shopping for conclusion. He cancelled some units of the polling and rendered the results null. He subtracted the numbers from the total. In the same line of intellectual bravado, he cancelled the numbers from the supplementary election. The numbers favoured the dancing Adeleke.

    No witness proved that there was any thumbprinting. About 80 witnesses came forward and stated there was no multiple thumbprinting, including the polling units the tribunal cancelled. Even the petitioners abandoned this during the hearings and Obiora acknowledged this in his verdict. Yet, he decided to cancel without evidence of malpractice or tampering.

  • Osun: I’m still governor, says Oyetola

    Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola at the weekend said he remained the duly elected governor regardless of Friday’s judgment of the Election Petition Tribunal.

    Oyetola enjoined the public to disregard the insinuations that he had been sacked, saying he was confident of retaining his mandate at the appellate court.

    He spoke yesterday while inspecting some on-going road and drainage projects in Osogbo, the state capital.

    The Governor said the outcome of the lower court didn’t in anyway affect the validity of the votes freely and willingly given to him by the people of the state.

    He said since the Constitution allowed him to file an appeal against the judgment, he remained the legitimate governor of the state.

    The governor said: “I am confident that our mandate will be reaffirmed at the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

    “As you all know, it was a split judgment, telling us that it was not a unanimous decision. This is part of our strength at the Appellate Court

    “I must correct the impression that I have been removed from office I remain the governor of Osun till all the electoral litigations are finalized.

    “So, my visit to this site is in furtherance of our commitment to ensure a better life for all residents of the state and to demonstrate that governance brought about by our government continues”, he said.

    Oyetola who had earlier received the leaders and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Government House and assured the teeming supporters of the party that he would come victorious at the end of the electoral litigation.

    He called on the party loyalists to remain calm and expressed confidence in the judiciary to deliver justice as it remained the ‘hope for a common man’”

    He told the people of the state and supporters of APC not to panic over the Friday judgement. Speaking while addressing supporters and members of the APC in Osun State, who paid a solidarity visit to him at the Government House yesterday, he reiterated his commitment to the development of the state, saying nothing would deter him from providing dividend of democracy to every nooks and crannies of the state.

    He expressed gratitude for the solidarity visit, and assured them that there was nothing to panic about the ruling.

    Describing the judgement of the tribunal as a ‘split judgment of two against one’, he said with God by his side he would become victorious.

    He said: “I want to appeal to our people to remain calm with the judgement of the Tribunal. I want to appreciate you for identifying with me over yesterday’s verdict. Well, it was a split judgement of two of one and it’s not unanimous.”

    He expressed confidence in the judiciary despite the judgement of the three-man election petition tribunal that declared his major contender, Adeleke, the winner of the September 22, 2018 governorship poll.

    In a state broadcast, the governor said: “I address you this day to inform you that in response to the judgment of the Osun Governorship Election Tribunal, sitting at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, on Friday, the 22nd day of March, 2019, we have gone on appeal to challenge the split decision of the Tribunal.

    “This split decision notwithstanding, our confidence in the judiciary remains unshaken, which is why we are going back to it for necessary review through the Appellate Court.”

    Meanwhile, APC in Osun State yesterday urged the Police and other security agencies to disregard claim by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  that the ruling party planned to unleash mayhem in the state.

    The APC branded the PDP claim a false alarm.

    “The notorious gang of violent acts in Osun are the PDP thugs, who when they break loose on streets and localities leave a trail of blood and tears. These people have been notorious for violence since 2003”, the APC director of publicity, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, said in a statement.

    According to him, “Whatever violence the PDP leadership is falsely accusing the APC of plotting is actually what the PDP itself must have worked out to unleash on the peaceful people of Osun, consistent with that party’s own trademark.”

    The APC argued that it had no incentive for violence over the verdict of the Election Petition Tribunal in Abuja because there are “credible options for redress in both the court of appeal and the Supreme Court.

    Oyatomi added:”Our party is intelligent enough to know that it remains in power at Abere until the Supreme Court decides otherwise. So, why should we be planning violence against our own people?’

     

  • Polls shift: Oyetola urges calm in Osun

    Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola has urged citizens to remain calm and peaceful without losing interest in the electoral process.

    In a reaction to the last-minute postponement of the elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the governor implored the people to turn out in a large number on Saturday.

    The governor, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary Mr. Adeniyi Adesina, said:

    “Let all citizens of State of Osun remain calm and peaceful in spite of the disappointment of the one-week postponement of the general elections.

    “I implore our people not to lose interest in the electoral process as a result of this temporary setback.
    “All eligible voters should not be deterred but turn out en masse on February 23 and March 9 to cast their votes for the candidates of their choice.

    “We should continue to have confidence in the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the electoral agency’s ability to conduct credible, free, fair and transparent elections as promised by its chair, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.”

  • Thugs connive with Police to terrorize Electorates – Famurewa

    The APC Senatorial candidate in Osun East senatorial district in the postponed presidential/national assembly elections, Hon. Ajibola Israel Famurewa has alleged threat to the lives of the people of eight villages in Atakumosa East local government of the state of Osun by thugs loyal to the PDP and one Chief Francis Fadahunsi, the PDP candidate.
    Famurewa, a serving member of the House of Representative representing Ijesa South federal constituency and the Director General of the campaign organization of the incumbent governor of the state, Gboyega Oyetola made this known when he led party leaders and other APC candidates to address a press conference on the security challenges of his zone after a meeting with the commissioner of police, Abiodun Ige at the state headquarters in Osogbo, the state capital.
    It was authoritatively reported that residents of Iwara, Olowu, Atorin, Ifewara, Temidayo, Tobalase, Lapaide and Faforiji communities in Atakunmosa East Local Government of Osun state were on Thursday thrown into confusion when gunmen suspected to be armed political thugs attacked villagers in the build up to postponed  Saturday elections.
    In the attack which was said to have occurred around 11:30pm, on Thursday evening, where an eleven years old girl, Rukayat Balogun was shot  in the leg by the suspected political thugs who invaded Iwara village and searched indiscriminately all the houses in the affected community. It was learnt that the mother of the victim, Mrs Fasilat is an active member and a food vendor in the O – Meal school feeding programme of the ruling All Progressives Congress in the area.
    Famurewa who expressed worries about the influx of thugs into the villages said for over a week now, the suspected thugs have been terrorizing people of the areas especially the supporters of the All Progressives Congress APC, mainly because Atakumosa East was won convincingly by the APC in the last guber election despite the huge financial inducements by the PDP.
    According to him, a team of thugs led by Sanya Omirin and Folorunsho Aderibigbe popularly known as “Serere” searched, ransacked every household and started unleashing terror on houses accommodating APC supporters.
    “The thugs were said to have armed with dangerous weapons like guns, axes and charms were moving around freely for four hours which the operation lasted. The mother of the eleven years old girl who is currently receiving treatment in the Wesley Guild hospital Ilesa also confirmed that Serere led the gangsters to her house when the honourable minister of health, Prof. Isaac Adewole paid an unscheduled visit on the recuperating girl whose leg was strayed with bullets.
    “I have told Chief Fadahunsi times without number to desist from nurturing thugs. The information at my disposal indicates that Chief Fadahunsi bought and imported 100 guns (60 AK47 and 40 pump actions) into Osun. I told him to his face that election is not a do or die affair.”
    While calling on the Police to swing into action and ensure the perpetrators are arrested, investigated and brought into book to face the full wrath of justice, Famurewa accused the DPO in charge of Iperindo division, saying he is conniving with PDP thugs to unleash terror on his supporters.
    Other leaders on his entourage, which included Chief Adebiyi Adelowo, Hon. Lawrence Ayeni, Hon. Wale Adedoyin also advised the Commissioner of police to transfer all the DPOs in Ijesaland to forestall total breakdown of law and order. In their words, “Though we have appealed to our members and supporters to remain calm in the face of provocation, but let it be known that we are resolute in our determination to resist violence and intimidation in our land”, they concluded.

  • Oyetola sets up committee to boost revenue from forests

    As part of efforts to boost the state’s revenue through forestry, Gov. Gboyega Oyetola of Osun has set up a six-man committee to reposition the sector.

    Mr Adeniyi Adeshina, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor,  made this known in a statement on Sunday in Osogbo.

    Adeshina said that the committee headed by Prof. Bayonle Olorede, the Provost of  Post Graduate College of the Osun State University, Osogbo, had been given three weeks to submit a report on how to stimulate the sector for optimum performance.

    According to Adeshina, the committee is expected to resolve issues relating to the closure of the forests since 2018 and other outstanding matters among stakeholders in the sector.

    He said the committee would also suggest ways to enhance Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from forestry and give other recommendations that may be necessary.

    The statement also quoted Olorede as saying that recommendations that would enable the state to maximise the potentials in the sector would be presented to the governor.

    “We are ready to find out the remote and immediate causes as regards why forests were  closed since 2018 in the state,’’ he said.

    He added that the task of the committee was  premised  largely on how the state could  generate revenue and block leakages by building a robust and improved forestry management system  in the state

    NAN

     

  • Osun residents charged to see governance as joint responsibility

    The residents of Osun State have been advised to see business of governance as a joint responsibility for which they must be active participants.

    Addressing a press briefing in Osogbo, the Supervisor in charge of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Bola Oyebamiji, therefore, called for the support of the people to make the Gboyega Oyetola administration succeed.

    The immediate past Commissioner for Finance, who is also the Supervisor for Commerce, Cooperatives and Industries, submitted that for government to succeed, the people must contribute their quota by paying their taxes and other levies promptly for the government to be able to provide social amenities and build infrastructure.

    He stressed the need for residents to join hands with the government to move the state forward.

    According to him: “All over the world, no government can succeed without the input and contribution of the governed either through payment of taxes and levies or through the maintenance of public works.

    “The administration of Mr. Oyetola is ready to look inwards and raise funds which will in turn be used to better the lives of the masses in the state. The time has passed that state government will be looking up to the federal government for funds through the federal allocation which is already is dwindling.

    “The Oyetola administration is determined to make life better for the people of the state and it is eager to build on the achievements of the past eight years. I want to sincerely appeal to residents of Osun and indigenes, both home and abroad, to see the task of moving the state forward as  onerous which all and sundry must join hands with government to achieve.

    Read Also: Osun tribunal: Oyetola to open defence January 30

    “The present administration in Osun is eager to put smiles on the faces of the people through masses oriented programmes and policies but this can be only achieved if the people play their roles. it is time that we began to see business of governance as a joint responsibility. If you don’t have any means of paying your tax or other levies you can assist government in the maintenance of public works.

    “Mr. Gboyega Oyetola is another kind hearted individual with a sincere heart to continue from where the immediate past administration stopped. The policy of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is to put smiles on the faces of the people and so we have no choice than to continue to drive the growth and development of our dear state.

    “Osun is already on a pedestal of greatness and we shall get there but with the support of the people. Our state is ranked among the best in the country. With the support of our people, the task ahead will easy for us to achieve.”

     

  • Osun residents charged to see governance as joint responsibility

    The residents of Osun State have been advised to see business of governance as a joint responsibility for which they must be active participants.

    Addressing a press briefing in Osogbo, the Supervisor in charge of the Ministry of Finance, Mr. Bola Oyebamiji, therefore, called for the support of the people to make the Gboyega Oyetola administration succeed.

    The immediate past Commissioner for Finance, who is also the Supervisor for Commerce, Cooperatives and Industries, submitted that for government to succeed, the people must contribute their quota by paying their taxes and other levies promptly for the government to be able to provide social amenities and build infrastructure.

    He stressed the need for residents to join hands with the government to move the state forward.

    Read Also: Osun tribunal: Oyetola to open defence January 30

    According to him: “All over the world, no government can succeed without the input and contribution of the governed either through payment of taxes and levies or through the maintenance of public works.

    “The administration of Mr. Oyetola is ready to look inwards and raise funds which will, in turn, be used to better the lives of the masses in the state. The time has passed that state government will be looking up to the federal government for funds through the federal allocation which is already is dwindling.

    “The Oyetola administration is determined to make life better for the people of the state and it is eager to build on the achievements of the past eight years. I want to sincerely appeal to residents of Osun and indigenes, both home and abroad, to see the task of moving the state forward as onerous which all and sundry must join hands with government to achieve.

    “The present administration in Osun is eager to put smiles on the faces of the people through masses oriented programmes and policies but this can be only achieved if the people play their roles. it is time that we began to see business of governance as a joint responsibility. If you don’t have any means of paying your tax or other levies you can assist government in the maintenance of public works.

    “Mr. Gboyega Oyetola is another kind-hearted individual with a sincere heart to continue from where the immediate past administration stopped. The policy of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is to put smiles on the faces of the people and so we have no choice than to continue to drive the growth and development of our dear state.

    “Osun is already on a pedestal of greatness and we shall get there but with the support of the people. Our state is ranked among the best in the country. With the support of our people, the task ahead will easy for us to achieve.“

  • Osun presents N152 billion 2019 budget

    Osun State governor Gboyega Oyetola on Thursday presented N152, 756, 088, 830.00 budget for 2019 fiscal year.

    Titled “Budget of Hope,” N15,870,175,600.00 10.39 was allocated to recurrent  while  capital expenditure received N91,957,496,420.00 65.43.

    At the presentation before the 26-member Assembly, Oyetola described the 2019 Budget as unique, saying it was drawn from a carefully-crafted Development Document.

    According to him, the budget will be “objectively and faithfully” implemented.

    The governor, who appealed to the people to cooperate with his government in transforming the state, he said: “This budget is a product of the collective inputs of broad-based stakeholders, strategic thinking and world-class ideas on economic renewal and re-engineering.

    “By its content and strategy, it is home-based, people-owned and 21st-century-thinking propelled.

    “By this strategy, the people have spoken and given direction on the way forward.

    “This Budget of Hope is, therefore, a product of people’s hope. We shall put all measures in place to give life to the hope they expect.

    He added: “We are determined to set the State of Osun on the path of real and time-tasted growth through unprecedented investment in the core sectors – agriculture, mining, tourism, commerce and industry, infrastructure, education, health and technology – to sustainably drive our economy.

    “We shall put strategies in place to further promote food security, employment and create wealth by investing heavily in agriculture, mining, infrastructure, commerce and industry, education and technology.

    “We shall also introduce creative and prudent management of our resources, block leakages and eliminate wastages.

    “We will assemble the brightest of the best minds to drives our policies. We will provide equitable opportunities and people-oriented governance.

    Speaker Najeem Salaam said the presentation of the 2019 budget was significant because it was the first to be presented by Oyetola while promising speedy’s Assembly attention to it.