On Tuesday, May 9th, 2023, the Supreme Court sitting in Abuja, Nigeria, confirmed the victory of Ademola Adeleke as the Governor of Osun State.
This ruling put an end to a long legal battle that had been ongoing since the Osun State gubernatorial election held in 2022.
The judgement of the Supreme Court followed an earlier decision by a three-member panel of the appellate court led by Justice Mohammed Shuaibu, which had upheld Adeleke’s victory and nullified the judgement of the election petition tribunal that had earlier nullified Adeleke’s victory in January 2023.
It would be recalled that Adeleke, who contested under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had initially been declared the winner of the Osun State governorship election in September 2022.
However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Gboyega Oyetola, challenged the result, alleging irregularities in the election process.
The matter eventually went to the election petition tribunal, which in January 2023, declared Oyetola the winner of the election, nullifying Adeleke’s victory.
Meanwhile, Adeleke appealed the ruling, and the appellate court subsequently overturned the judgement of the tribunal and upheld his victory.
The APC candidate, Oyetola, also appealed the decision of the appellate court, but the Supreme Court has now put the matter to rest by affirming Adeleke’s victory as the rightful winner of the Osun State gubernatorial election.
Nevertheless, The ruling has been greeted with mixed reactions from different quarters, with supporters of both parties expressing their opinions on the judgement.
