The National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal, sitting at the Magistrate Court in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, has upheld the victory of Senator Solomon Adeola, known as Yayi, in the February 25 National Assembly election for the Ogun West Senatorial District. This ruling comes in response to the Senatorial election petition marked EPT/OG/Sen/2023, which was filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dada Adeleke.
In the judgment delivered by the three-member panel led by Justice Kabir Gabo, the petition by Adeleke was dismissed on the grounds of lacking merit. The tribunal confirmed Senator Adeola, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the duly elected representative for Ogun West, in line with the declaration made by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Furthermore, the panel found that two witnesses presented by the petitioner failed to provide credible evidence to support allegations of the election’s non-compliance with the Electoral Act, constitutional requirements, and manual voting procedures. Consequently, the petitioner’s plea for Senator Adeola’s victory to be declared null and void was deemed unmeritorious and therefore not granted.
As part of the tribunal’s decision, a fine of N500,000 was imposed on the petitioner, payable to the respondent.