A former governorship aspirant in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, Kayode Ojo, has closed his case at the Federal High Court in the suit he filed challenging the nomination of the governor-elect, Biodun Oyebanji, by the APC for the June 18 governorship election.
Ojo, in a suit, marked FHC / ABJ / C5 / 15 / 2022 earlier filled in the Abuja division of the court which was later transferred to the Ado-Ekiti division is asking the court to declare him as the valid candidate of the APC on January 27, 2020, governorship primary of the party or nullify the entire shadow exercise.
In his prayers before the court, Ojo stated that “the decision of the party to conduct the 2022 Ekiti State gubernatorial primary election purportedly with the use of political appointees of the state executive as an electoral committee/ returning officers constitute an irregularity and fundamental non-compliance with the party guidelines regulating the conduct of the said party primaries, the Electoral Act and was therefore void and of no effect.”
He equally prayed the court, “to set aside the party gubernatorial primary conducted on January 27, 2022 on the grounds of infraction of the APC constitution, guidelines and the 1999 constitution and ordering the conduct of fresh primary by the party.
“The cancellation of the votes irregularly and fraudulently recorded for Biodun Oyebanji during the primary on the ground that the Governor-Elect had run foul of the provisions of the APC constitution and the guidelines regulating the conduct of the party primaries.”
Before closing his case before Justice Babs Kuewumi, the plaintiff was led in evidence alongside with other witnesses by his lead counsel Dr Alex Izinyon SAN.
The proceedings however suffered a setback as the defence team through its lawyer, Kareem Akingbolu failed to open their case and pleaded with the court for an extension of time for filing of the defence.
But, the plaintiff’s lawyer argued that since the order of the court to publish the writ of summons was carried out on March 21, 2022, “the defence team ought to have filed their reply within 30 days which lapsed on April 21, 2022.”
He asked for a leave of court to reply formally to the application made by the defence for an extension of time and the case was subsequently adjourned till July 25, 2022, for the continuation of trial.
Earlier, the Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress in Ekiti State, Mr. Segun Dipe, in a press statement claimed that Engineer Kayode Ojo during the Court Proceedings revealed that he won the APC Primary Election based on the results posted on the Social Media.
The Ekiti APC Spokesperson alleged that “the embattled Aspirant for the Governorship primaries of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Engineer Kayode Ojo, closed his case in court, after calling two witnesses, himself and one Taiwo Obembe from Igogo in Moba Local Government”.
Dipe in his own statement narrated “how under cross-examination, Engineer Kayode Ojo who had earlier argued that no primary election was held by the party, changed gear to admit that election was actually held, and based on the results he got from the social media, that he won the election”.
The APC Spokesman, in his statement revealed further that “Engineer Kayode Ojo, then prayed that the court should declare him winner of the APC Governorship Primary Election held in Ekiti State on the 27th January, 2022”.
He further stated that “the Plaintiff also claimed that most of the Local Government returning officers were appointees of Governor Kayode Fayemi, who ought not to have been made returning officers for the election in the first place”.
Adding that, “further cross-examined, Ojo later agreed that political appointees were not disqualified from acting as returning officers by the guidelines for the election or party political constitution”.
Dipe, also pointed out that Engineer Kayode Ojo said “he also agreed that Gov. Kayode Fayemi was the number one APC political leader in Ekiti State and that JKF is also his leader”.
However, Segun Dipe concluded in his statement that “the case has been adjourned till 25th July, 2022”.