Former Governor Oyetola couldn’t have been so confident of been restored to power through the courts if he hadn’t been assured by some high powers that the judgement would be rigged on his behalf. If there was any Party that rigged the Osun governorship election, it is the APC, the PDP won that election only by the overwhelming rejection of the APC, which made it impossible for the APC to succeed in completely subverting the will of the people.
In Nigeria, elections don’t end on the ballot, they go all the way to the Supreme Court and political manoeuvres don’t end with winning elections, politicians invest huge resources in trying to influence the posting of certain judges to handle their election matters at tribunals and they can do everything to influence the outcome of election related litigations, including, allegedly, bribing judges.
The Goodluck Jonathan administration accused Bola Ahmed Tinubu of influencing the former President of the Court of Appeal to give sometimes, very ridiculous judgements in favour of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). In the era of governorship election cases terminating at the Appeal Court, the Southwest ACN benefited from many questionable judicial interventions, which sacked PDP elected governors and replaced them with ACN candidates. The discovery that it was easier “inducing” justices of the lower courts, informed the decision of the National Assembly to enact a law that sees governorship cases go all the way to the Supreme Court.
Ayo Salami was unceremoniously removed as the President of the Court of Appeal and subsequently retired as a judge. If there was any doubts about Justice Salami been guilty of the allegations of bias against him, his close affinity and the constant patronage he enjoys from the APC led administration as soon they came into power, should put paid to such doubts.
The nullification of Governor Ademola Adeleke’s election as governor of Osun State is not completely surprising to some of us who have been following Gboyega Oyetola’s bold statements regarding the Tribunal’s sittings. We knew all the while that something beyond his lawyers’ proficiency and arguments in court must have been giving him the confidence to believe that the case will go in his favour.
The semi-independence being enjoyed by the Nigerian judiciary at the moment will definitely be a thing of the past, should any electoral magic as being currently conjured by the APC return a Tinubu as Nigeria’s President.
