Ekiti poll: Appeal Court rejects SDP venue change

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By Rotimi Ojomoyela

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ADO-EKITI — The Court of Appeal has declined a request by counsel to the Social Democratic Party, SDP, Ebenezer Akinbuli, to relocate the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal from Ado-Ekiti over alleged security concerns.

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The development came as the tribunal on Tuesday adjourned proceedings to Wednesday, September 24, to clarify the status of correspondence relating to the proposed relocation of the tribunal.

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The tribunal had earlier adjourned proceedings from September 16 to September 23 to enable the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, consider the petitioners’ request for a change of venue following an alleged assault on SDP counsel.

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However, in the absence of the SDP counsel, another letter was served on the tribunal seeking an adjournment pending a decision on the application to relocate the proceedings.

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At Tuesday’s sitting, the Chairman of the three-member tribunal, Justice Abubakar Kutigi, informed counsel that the President of the Court of Appeal had declined to order the transfer of the sitting.

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He said the tribunal remained properly constituted to continue hearing the petitions.

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Counsel to the All Progressives Congress, APC, Kabir Akingbolu, and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Bunmi Ipinlaiye, said they were not aware of the alleged decision of the Court of Appeal, which had been served through the tribunal secretary.

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Justice Kutigi consequently adjourned the matter to September 24 to clear any uncertainty and allow proceedings to continue.

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Speaking with journalists after the proceedings, Akingbolu said the petitioners had renewed their request for the relocation of the tribunal from Ado-Ekiti, adding that the application related to the SDP petition and not the Action Alliance, AA, petition.

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He also said letters seeking adjournment had been filed in relation to the two petitions.

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Akingbolu further described the challenge to Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s victory as unusual, citing the margin of victory and voting pattern recorded in the election.

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He said the governor won in all 16 local government areas and most of the 177 wards in the state, and questioned the basis of the petition.

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According to him, the petitioners had also sought several adjournments, which he said had slowed the proceedings.

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Akingbolu urged the petitioners to focus on the substantive issues before the tribunal.

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He said, “There is confusion, so we need to clarify it. The SDP filed a petition and the AA filed a petition. On the last adjourned day, September 16, a petition was written by counsel to the party, SDP, saying that there was no security and that the venue of the tribunal should be moved to Abuja or elsewhere.

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“As it is today, they are secure. They are the ones that sought the adjournment. The court has now adjourned the matter to tomorrow for continuation at the instance of the petitioners because they wrote the petition and a letter of adjournment to that effect on both election petitions.”

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Akingbolu also argued that the governor’s performance in the election made the petition unusual, noting that he won across the state.

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He said, “It is an unprecedented petition. The success of the governor and the people is unprecedented. The 16 local governments, almost the entire 177 wards, were won by the governor.”

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The APC counsel further questioned the vote totals recorded by some of the petitioners, arguing that the figures were insufficient, in his view, to support a governorship election challenge.

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He maintained that the tribunal should proceed with the substantive hearing of the petitions rather than be delayed by procedural applications.

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