The legal team of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has disowned a petition purportedly filed by the party and its governorship candidate, Asiwaju Bola Oyebamiji, challenging the victory of Governor Ademola Adeleke in the August 15 governorship election.
Politics Nigeria reports that the team said neither the APC nor Oyebamiji authorised the petition reportedly filed before the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.
Speaking in an interview on Monday, a senior member of the legal team, Adekunle Adegoke (SAN), said the lawyers had advised Oyebamiji and the party leadership against approaching the tribunal after reviewing the outcome of the election.
According to him, the decision was deliberate and followed consultations with the candidate and other party leaders, with the legal team concluding that pursuing litigation could further heighten tensions in the state.
Adegoke said the legal team, comprising several Senior Advocates of Nigeria and other legal experts, had identified grounds upon which the election result could have been challenged but opted not to pursue them.
He said, “We advised our client that the best in this circumstance is for us not to go to the tribunal.”
The senior lawyer explained that the decision was not an admission that the election was free of irregularities, stressing that the team was aware of alleged malpractices but chose peace over litigation.
He said the APC wanted to demonstrate that it was not interested in using litigation to create unnecessary tension in the state.
Adegoke disclosed that the legal team met with Oyebamiji and other party leaders shortly after the results were announced and presented its findings before reaching the decision.
He said Oyebamiji subsequently accepted the advice and congratulated Adeleke, adding that it would be inconsistent for the candidate to later authorise a petition against the governor.
He therefore described the petition attributed to the APC candidate and the party as unauthorised.
“Our client, having willingly, without pressure, without duress, congratulated Governor Adeleke, do you now think it will be legitimate as a man of honour for Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji to go behind and authorise the filing of a petition?” he asked.
Adegoke further said the legal team had formally distanced itself from the documents filed by individuals claiming to be acting as APC lawyers.
“I want to be on record that the APC legal team has denounced the bundle of papers filed by some individuals masquerading as APC lawyers. It was not authorised by APC as a party or its candidate,” he stated.
The development comes after notices of petitions purportedly filed by the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were displayed at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo on Monday.
According to the notices signed by the Tribunal Secretary, Belemo Diete-Spiff, the first petition, numbered EPT/Os/Gov/01/2026, listed Oyebamiji and the APC as petitioners, while Adeleke, the Accord Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission were named as respondents.
The second petition, numbered EPT/Os/Gov/02/2026, was filed by the PDP against INEC, the Accord Party and Adeleke.
