The Ondo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal on Wednesday unanimously affirmed Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s victory in the November 16, 2024, poll, ruling that all challenges against his mandate were “speculative” and lacked substance.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Benson Ogbu and two other members, Justices Imelda Etiape and Daurabu Sikkam, the three-member panel found that petitioners failed to prove allegations of over-voting or breaches of the Electoral Act 2022 “beyond reasonable doubt.” As a result, each petition was dismissed for lacking merit.
“We are not persuaded that there was any substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act that could alter the outcome,” Justice Ogbu declared. “Absent credible evidence of over-voting or vote buying, these petitions stand as mere speculation.”
The tribunal heard five separate petitions filed by the Action Alliance (AA) and its candidate, Abdullahi Olowokere; the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and its candidate, Bamidele Akingboye; the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Agboola Ajayi; the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and its candidate, Kolawole Ogunfeyimi; and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and its candidate, Adeyemi Nejo.
During proceedings, PDP counsel Ishaka Dikko and Bankole Akomolafe argued that INEC and the All Progressives Congress (APC) conspired to manipulate results, but the tribunal found their forensic evidence “faulty” and “unverifiable.” “Elections are not determined by public opinion or propaganda,” the panel observed. “Petitioners failed to link any polling unit to the alleged malpractices.”
Action Alliance claimed INEC improperly excluded its candidate; however, the tribunal held that AA lacked standing, as it had no candidate on the ballot. “Where a party fails to field a candidate, it cannot seek redress at this tribunal,” Justice Etiape noted.
APM’s allegations of corrupt practices and SDP’s claims of INEC favoring APC were thrown out for lacking factual support. ADC’s petition was similarly dismissed because no single polling unit was identified to substantiate its case.
Regarding PDP’s challenge to Deputy Governor Olayide Adelami’s qualifications, the tribunal stated that the Supreme Court had already ruled on the matter, rendering it a pre-election issue outside the tribunal’s jurisdiction. “This petition should not have been filed at all,” Justice Sikkam remarked.
