The tribunal held that Adeleke did not score the majority of lawful votes during the July 16 governorship election in the state.
The Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has explained why he still has faith in the country’s judicial arm despite sacking him as the governor-elect.
Recall that the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal last week sacked Governor Ademola Adeleke and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to withdraw the certificate of return issued to him and issue a fresh one to Gboyega Oyetola as the duly elected governor of Osun.
The tribunal held that Adeleke did not score the majority of lawful votes during the July 16 governorship election in the state.
In a statement issued by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, Ademola noted the critical role of the judiciary in entrenching and strengthening Nigeria's democracy, listing the many judicial interventions that helped to stabilise the nation while receiving Unit to Unit Ambassadors (UUA) from the Osun West senatorial district.
The governor said he still had faith in the judiciary because of how he was exonerated of forgery allegations.
The statement read, “Democracy revolves around the wheel of justice. Justice dispensation is the realm of the judiciary. All democrats must therefore have unshaken faith in the judiciary. I have that trust and confidence in the judiciary to right the wrong and deepen our democracy.
“I am a beneficiary of judicial intervention. I can’t forget how the judiciary cleared me of forgery allegations. You can’t have a strong democracy unless we all hold the judiciary as the indispensable arbiter.
“So we are going on appeal and we trust we are going to get justice. I urge all of us to be calm and go about our daily activities peacefully.
“I understand how hard and emotional the judgement is to the people of Osun State. But we must vent our disagreement only through the judicial process. That is why there is an appeal process. We have all the grounds to appeal and we are doing that.
“So continue your campaign unit to unit. We are running Osun State to deliver on the will and aspirations of the people. By God and man, our mandate will be revalidated through the same judicial process”, the governor noted.