Osun Senator dismisses disqualification claim after Supreme Court judgement

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The Senator representing Osun East in the Senate, Olubiyi Fadeyi, on Saturday dismissed insinuations that his re-election bid had been ended by the last Thursday’s judgement of the Supreme Court.

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The Apex Court had upheld the appeal filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission against the Court of Appeal judgment that voided parts of the Electoral Act 2026 dealing with political party primaries and membership registers.

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Fadeyi, in a statement obtained in Osogbo on Saturday, said the process that made him the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the Osun Central Senatorial District in the 2027 polls adhered strictly with the Constitution and the Electoral Acts.

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INEC had appealed against parts of the Court of Appeal judgment in a suit instituted by the Zenith Labour Party at the Federal High Court.

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A seven-member panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro set aside the Court of Appeal’s decision, which had favoured the Zenith Labour Party and upheld the trial court’s judgment.

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The court held that Sections 77(5) and 84 of the Electoral Act do not conflict with the 1999 Constitution. It also awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.

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Also, the court, in two other judgments, dismissed two separate appeals filed by the Social Democratic Party and the Youth Party, which also filed separate appeals against INEC.

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Reacting to the insinuations that the Supreme Court judgement had put paid on his ambition to return to the Senate, Fadeyi said those behind the insinuations were political opponents, jittery of his wide acceptance and popularity ahead of the 2027 poll.

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The statement further read partly, “For clarity sake, there is no clear evidence Fadeyi’s disqualification from any court sitting, hence, the report of his alleged disqualification remains speculative and unfounded.

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“The processes to bestow the PDP ticket on Senator Fadeyi for second term in office is clear, legal and approved by all relevant party executives. The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP followed the provisions of electoral law and everything was done in accordance with the law and party’s laid down rules.

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“For emphasis, the PDP as a party followed the electoral law for all her party candidates in 2027 general elections. For the record, neither the PDP as party or Senator Olubiyi Fadeyi Ph.D are parties to the suit, however, Zenith Labour Party, ZLP and Young Progressive Party, YPP are main parties to the judgment.

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“Also, constitutional lawyers have said that the recent supreme court judgement does not in anyway invalidate names of candidates already published by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.”

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The lawmaker further said the issue relating to his candidacy remains an internal affair of the PDP, noting that it has been duly affirmed that he is the authentic candidate that the party supports.

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