It would recalled that Adebutu, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the March 18 gubernatorial election in Ogun State, together with some members of his party are presently standing trial for alleged vote-buying and money laundering perpetrated during the poll, in which an official of Zenith Bank, Celestina Appeal, testified on Tuesday that Adebutu ordered for 200,000 prepaid cards some days to the election.

Subsequently, their counsel, Gordy Uche (SAN), objected to the admissibility of the documents on the grounds that the documents were not certified, that no proper foundation was laid and that the prosecution did not comply with Section 90 (1) (e) of the Evidence Act as regards entries made in a banker’s book.

However, in overruling the defendants’ counsel, the judge agreed with the prosecuting counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), that there was no legal requirement that private documents must be certified.

Consequently, the court held that the documents were private documents that required no certification.

The trial judge further held that the prosecution witness, Celestina Appeal, in her testimony had earlier made reference to the certificate of compliance pursuant to Section 84 of the Evidence Act.

Although, the documents are entries in a banker’s book, strict adherence to Section 90 (1) (e) is no longer necessary since the documents were electronically generated and not produced in ledgers as contemplated by the said section.

The documents were, therefore, admitted as Exhibits 21, 22 and 23 respectively, as the  matter was thereafter, adjourned till 2nd and 3rd May 2024 as well as 5th, 6th and 7th June 2024 for further hearing.

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At the resumed hearing of the criminal charge against Adebutu and others before the Ogun State High Court, the prosecutor (Federal Government of Nigeria) represented by Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), called its 9th witness, Celestina Appeal, who is the head of the department of card services in Zenith Bank.

In her testimony, Ms Appeal stated that by a letter dated 27th February 2023, Adebutu applied for the issuance of 200,000 prepaid cards which he claimed were intended for distribution to beneficiaries of his empowerment scheme in commemoration of the death of his mother Dame Caroline Adebutu.

The witness stated that the cards were subsequently produced upon the approval of Verve and that the same were delivered to Adebutu on the 7th and 13th March 2023, respectively.

According to the witness, the account to which the cards were linked was not funded until the 16th and 17th of March 2023, the eve of the 2023 gubernatorial elections.

On how she came in contact with Ladi Adebutu, she said: “I know the 1st defendant. He has been a customer of the bank since 2009. The 1st defendant requested a card from the bank via a letter dated 27th February 2023 to issue 200,000 prepaid cards. The prepaid cards were for beneficiaries in commemoration of the death of his late mother, Dame Caroline Adebutu.

“He gave the bank a graphical design he wanted on the card. When we received the request, the first thing we did was to confirm if the letter was from him. We then confirmed that the purpose was for his late mother, and we did confirm that the mother was actually late. We later got approval for the card scheme from Verve. When we got the approval, we went ahead to produce the 200k cards.

“When the cards were produced, they were delivered to the bank in batches. The first was received on the 7th of March, 2023. The bank delivered in batches as well. The last batch was delivered on the 13th of March, 2023. Between 7th and 13th March, when the cards were delivered, the account wasn’t funded. It was after we delivered the last batch of cards that the account was funded to take care of the funding of the prepaid cards.”

Meanwhile, the prosecutor sought to tender the letter of request written by Adebutu and his statement of account but Mr Adebutu through his counsel, Gordy Uche (SAN) objected vehemently to the documents being admitted having not being  certified.

The prosecutor, Rotimi Jacobs SAN, countered the argument, saying that private documents did not require certification, citing different cases.

After listening to arguments from both sides, the trial Judge, Hon. Justice Abiodun Akinyemi, adjourned the case until Wednesday, 20th March 2024, for ruling and continuation of hearing.

Recall that Adebutu, alongside some members of PDP, are facing trial for alleged vote buying and money laundering, which was perpetrated during the March 18 gubernatorial poll in Ogun State.

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The meeting, which was held at the frontage of the Presidential Lodge, Oyo State Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, had in attendance the Oyo State governor and leader of the party in the South-West, Governor ‘Seyi Makinde and his Osun State counterpart, Senator Nurudeen Ademola Adeleke.

Speaking shortly after the meeting, Governor Makinde emphasised that the PDP was fully united in the South-West.

He said: “The major outcome of this meeting is that, now, the South-West PDP is fully united and we have a new National Vice Chairman in Barrister Lukman Ajisafe.

“That is the outcome of the meeting.”

Speaking earlier, the chairman of the PDP Board of Trustees led by its chairman and former Senate President, Senator Adolphus Wabara, appreciated Makinde and his Osun State counterpart, Adeleke, for providing leadership for the party in the South-West.

He described the region as the citadel of politics in Nigeria, stating that all PDP members must rally round and unite by putting all their differences behind them.

“The humility of Governor Makinde is just unprecedented.

“I want to thank the governor and our brother from Osun State on this occasion. I rise to speak on behalf of the Board of Trustees and I am happy that we are coincidentally here with you.

“The South-West is the citadel of politics in Nigeria in terms of education, development and exposure. But unfortunately, the PDP produced only two governors and I am sure the reason why that happened cannot be far-fetched.

“Now, we are here together as a family. If we are suffering, we are all suffering as a family. PDP remains the party that is not owned by anybody. It remains the most democratic party in Nigeria.

“So, I will beg all of us here to sheath our swords. It is on one or two people that will fill up vacancies and it is only God that knows best. Once these vacancies are filled through consensus or whatever, I beg of you to please accept it in good faith.”

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Also speaking after the meeting, the Deputy National Chairman (South), Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja, commended the leadership role of Governor Makinde and Governor Adeleke, adding that the South-West zone had always taken the lead at the national level of the party.

Similarly, the acting chairman of the South-West PDP, Chief Rahman Owokoniran, who welcomed the leaders to the meeting, described it as a special one, saying: “This occasion is a special one, because it is the coming together of our two governors in the region to midwife the unification of our party in the region.

“The wishes of our governors and leaders is to strengthen our party in the zone in view of returning our party to a winning status, we are proud to have the two governors who are committed to making our party strong in the zone and in the nation at large.

“I want to thank the two governors of the South-West and the great leaders of our party for showing up at today’s meeting to share the vision of our two leaders.”

Also in attendance at the meeting were former governors Olagunsoye Oyinlola and Olusegun Mimiko, and the governorship candidate of the PDP in Ogun State in the 2023 general election, Ladi Adebutu.

Others were serving and former deputy governors of Oyo State, serving and former lawmakers as well as party executives in the South-West and across the six states of the geopolitical zone.

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The governor said that all attempts to distract his administration had failed, noting that the Supreme Court victory marked an end to court shopping by his political adversaries.

Prince Abiodun stated this in an interview with journalists at the Gateway International Airport, Iperu-Remo, on his arrival from Abuja.

He called on the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Ladi Adebutu, and other political adversaries to get ready for their re-run in 2027.

“We hope our opponents who have been making a lot of noise about a re-run can prepare for a re-run in 2027.

“Now, this victory marks an end to this court shopping for adversaries and for us, it is the final victory in this journey that started in 2018.

“We will now keep our eyes further focused on the ball. All attempts to distract us have failed,” he said.

Governor Abiodun also promised that his administration would now focus more on sustaining it’s legacies, adding that the people of the state would begin to experience the good programmes his administration had for them.

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“We will now focus on sustaining our legacies, the foundation of which we laid since we assumed office in 2019 and in the coming weeks, you will see some of the goodies that we will be unveiling for the good people of the state,” he said.

Prince Abiodun expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for supporting his political journey, his team of lawyers, led by Chief Wole Olanipekun, national and state chairmen of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Dr. Abdulahi Umar Ganduje and Chief Yemi Sanusi for their support.

Governor Abiodun also praised the five-man panel of the Supreme Court led by Hon. Justice John Inyang Okoro, the Ogun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Appeal Court, for affirming the choice of the people of the state.

“Today, the Supreme Court has affirmed our victory, which was earlier affirmed by the tribunal and then the Appeal Court, but our adversaries were not satisfied. They proceeded to the Supreme Court and yet again the five-man panel led by the Hon. Justice John Inyang Okoro affirmed the wishes of the generality of the Ogun State people.

“We thank them because once again, they’ve demonstrated that they are the hope and the last one of the common man.

“We want to appreciate the tribunal who laid the foundation for today’s victory. The Appeal Court further built on that foundation and all the judges of both court and, of course, now the Supreme Court led by Hon. Justice John Inyang Okoro,” he said.

Secretary to the state government, Mr. Tokunbo Talabi, ascribed the victory to God Almighty.

He said that while the governor placed his trust in God, the opposition put theirs in money.

Member, House of Representatives, representing Yewa North/Imeko-Afon Federal Constituency, Hon. Gboyega Isiaka, noted that the victory had finally put an end to the belief of the opposition that they could unseat the incumbent, adding that the developmental strides of Governor Abiodun was certain to continue till 2027.

State chairman of the APC, Chief Yemi Sanusi, commended the Supreme Court for ensuring that the verdict of the people was not taken away by money mongers.

Special Adviser, Media and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, thanked God for the victory and the truth that was made known at the Supreme Court.

Akinmade said that money was put to shame, while those who placed their trust in God earned a well-deserved victory.

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Abiodun contested the election on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

A five-member panel of the court, in a unanimous judgment, on Friday, dismissed the appeal by Oladipupo Adebutu, who was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the election.

Justice Tijjani Abubakar, who read the lead judgment, held that Adebutu and his party failed to prove their case against Abiodun.

Justice Abubakar resolved all the issues raised for determination against the appellants and held that the appeal was without merit.

He proceeded to dismiss it

Meanwhile, the APC in Ogun state has applauded the judgment of the Supreme Court, describing it as a long awaited judgment.

The party said that the judgment “served the course of justice and sounded the death knell on the vaunting and forlorn serial governorship ambition of Ladi Adebutu.”

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A statement issued in Abuja by the Publicity Secretary of APC in Ogun State, Tunde Oladunjoye,  quoted the party chairman, Chief Yemi Sanusi congratulating  Governor Dapo Abiodun and his deputy, Engr. Noimot Salako-Oyedele “on the landmark judgment by the apex court.”

The statement reads in part: “We salute the incorruptible and courageous justices of the Supreme Court for upholding the concurrent verdicts of the lower courts. They have shown that truly justice lies with the judiciary.

“We also want to congratulate our gentleman and hardworking Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun (CON) and his deputy, Engr. Noimot Salako-Oyedele, on this sweet landmark judgment. It has been long in coming but well-deserved.

“Now that the matter has been finally laid to rest, we urge our amiable governor and his team to increase the tempo of their transformational governance in our dear Ogun State.

“And we again, for the umpteenth time, urge the losers to purge themselves of their illusions (if they ever will) and join hands with His Excellency, Governor Dapo Abiodun (CON) to take our dear state to greater heights. They should stop the politics of bitterness and offer constructive criticisms and ideas on how to make our state a better place for all.

“We also wish to congratulate the good people of Ogun State for their steadfastness and support for the APC-led administration in spite of the needless distractions and antics of the opposition.”

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The governor spoke in Abeokuta on Friday while reacting to the appellate court’s verdict, which affirmed his electoral victory in a split decision of two to one.

Abiodun also appealed to his opponent, Mr Ladi Adebutu, who lost in the case, to join hands with his government in the task of making Ogun one of the best states in the country.

He said he appreciated the judiciary, stating that it had upheld the rule of law.

“The Court of Appeal today has affirmed the ruling of the lower court, the election tribunal, who did a very meticulous, painstaking work in delivering their judgment.

“I want to invite all our opponents who have tried their best in their quest to also govern the state; indeed, you mean well for the good people of the state.

“Having failed at the polls, tribunal, and the appeal, you should come and join hands with us and stop running from pillar to post,” he said.

He acknowledged the All Progressives Congress, APC, for giving him the platform to run, while thanking members who had been with the party since the beginning of the court process.

Abiodun also thanked the people of the state for entrusting their mandate to him and members of his party, affirming that his administration would continue to be fair, just, and equitable.

Source: NAN

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The tribunal, sitting in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, chaired by Justice H. N. Kunaza, and supported by Justice J B Egele (Member 1) and Justice Sannusi Shehu (Member 2) dismissed the petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its defeated candidate, Ladi Adebutu, on the grounds of incompetence, vagueness and lack of understanding of the usage of the wordings of the Electoral Act, among others; resulting in inability of the petitioners to prove any of the grounds of the petition.

The APC, in a statement by its publicity secretary, Mr. Tunde Oladunnoye, quoted the  state chairman of  the party, Chief Yemi Sanusi, as describing the victory of the party at the polls and the tribunal as “divine mandate”.

“We went round the 20 local government areas of the state, we went to some local governments twice, we campaigned vigorously in the wards,  we showcased what our party and government have done in four years and was doing. In most of our campaigns, we commissioned projects and inaugurated new ones which was unprecedented in the electioneering annals of Nigeria. Our people believed in us, trusted us and voted for continuity. We had no doubt about our electoral victory and it was indeed a  divine mandate,” Sanusi said.

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“We have always known that the PDP is as disorganised as its ramshackle petitions which the party and its  highly incompetent and run away defeated candidate knew or ought to have known cannot succeed. They merely wanted to reap where they did not sow, forgetting that you can’t build something on nothing.  The tribunal has rightly done justice and due diligence to their spurious petitions. We only hope that Ladi Adebutu will eat the humble pie and return to Nigeria and face the criminal charges of votes buying and money laundering hanging on his neck at the High Court. We challenge him to be man enough to return to Nigeria,” the APC chairman said.

Sanusi also commended the victorious legal team: “Our party and governor assembled the best brains in election tribunal warfare in Nigeria today. There is no election dispute of note that is relied on in this case that at least one of our lawyers is not a part of,” he added.

“Finally, to God be the biggest credit and glory. We appreciate the unusual grace of God upon Prince Dapo Abiodun, to the chagrin of his detractors. Not many have this grace that when you think they are locked in, God opens the roof for them to walk free. Till today, many cannot understand why God chose Dapo Abiodun against all odds, but He did, and there is nothing his detractors could do about it,” Sanusi concluded.

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This is even as the tribunal reserved judgment in the petition as counsels to all the parties submitted their final written addresses.

The chairman of the three-man tribunal, Justice Hamidu Kunaza, told the counsels that the final day of the judgment would be communicated to all the parties.

Adebutu had approached the tribunal to challenge the declaration of Prince Abiodun as the winner of the governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, saying that the election was marred with corrupt practices and non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

In their separate submissions however, counsels to the 1st respondent (INEC), Mr Remi Olatubora (SAN), 2nd (Dapo Abiodun), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), and the 3rd (APC), Mr Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), told the tribunal that the petitioners failed to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Counsel to INEC, Olatubora, prayed the tribunal to dismiss the petition for being absolutely unmerited and a waste of the tribunal’s precious time.

He said that allegations of corrupt practices, non-compliance, multiple thumb printing of ballot papers, ballot stuffing, and forgery as alleged by the petitioners were not proved beyond any reasonable doubt.

He described the testimony of the witnesses brought by the petitioners as heresy, which is not admissible in law.

Counsel to Prince Dapo Abiodun, Chief Wole Olanipekun, (SAN) in his final address, described Adebutu’s petition as a mere academic exercise.

He noted that the soul of the petition was not duly signed and stamped and, therefore, lacked merit to be adopted and should be struck out.

“The document is not signed, not dated, no heading, no title, no identity, no signature, no stamp. The CTC has no signature,” he said.

However, in his counter-argument, Counsel to Adebutu, Chris Uche, SAN, told the tribunal that all documents presented by the petitioners were obtained from INEC.

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He urged the tribunal to declare Adebutu the winner of the governorship election or, in the alternative, order a rerun of the election in 99 polling units where he alleged that there were disruptions.

Counsel to APC, Tayo Oyetubo, who spoke to journalists shortly after the adjournment, said the respondents have presented a good case, even as he expressed confidence that the judgement would be in their favour.

He said: “All parties have addressed the court on the case before the court, and the matter has been adjourned for judgment. The case that was brought to the tribunal was attacked on different grounds in terms of competence, in terms of substance, and in terms of the quality of the witnesses that were brought, all of those issues have been adequately canvassed before the court and in a nutshell, the respondents are confident that they’ve done a good job and winning the case.”

It would be recalled that APC and Prince Abiodun had described Adebutu and PDP’s petition as a wild goose chase.

Abiodun and APC, in their final written submission earlier reported, argued that the petitioners did an awful job and failed to prove their case.

This, they said, was because Adebutu and PDP presented tutored and unreliable witnesses, relied on documents that contradicted their witnesses’ case, and presented experts whose testimonies and documents lacked probative value.

They argued that Adebutu and PDP, who were accused of vote buying with credible evidence, had unclean hands and could not receive equity with those unclean hands.

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Abiodun and the Ogun State chapter of the APC made this submission in their final written addresses as respondents in the case brought against them, arguing that the petitioners did an awful job and failed to prove their case.

That, they said, was because Adebutu and PDP presented tutored and unreliable witnesses, relied on documents that contradicted their witnesses’ case, and presented experts whose testimonies and documents lacked probative value.

They argued that Adebutu and PDP who were accused of vote buying with credible evidence, had unclean hands and could not receive equity with those unclean hands.

They further said that out of the 87 witnesses of the petitioners, 38 stated they were polling unit agents but did not tender any evidence to prove their claim, adding that the 49 who testified as voters testified the same thing word for word, making the same mistakes, thereby creating a situation where the tribunal ought to hold that their depositions were too obvious to be coincidental and were therefore unbelievable and of no probative value.

Arguing that the petition itself was based on provisions of the Electoral Act that do not support the margin of lead principle, Abiodun/APC contended that while the Margin of Lead principle is rooted in section 134 of the Electoral Act, the petition is based on sections 24, 47, 51, and 62 of the Electoral Act.

Relying on the Supreme Court verdict in Oyetola v. Adeleke, they argued that the petitioners did not prove overvoting, as Adebutu did not tender the BVAS machines for any of the 990 units complained about and did not even tender any BVAS machine.

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Again, while noting that the petitioners expressly stated that Governor Abiodun was “duly sponsored” by APC, the respondents said Adebutu did not present any evidence to back his forgery allegation against Abiodun, and that at the governor’s request, the tribunal summoned a WAEC official who produced a certified copy of the same certificate that the governor submitted to INEC.

They further said that while the petitioners claimed that Governor Abiodun should not be governor because he had been convicted in Miami, USA, they provided no judgment in evidence of the alleged conviction.

Arguing that non-qualification was different from disqualification, Abiodun/APC said that even if such judgment existed, it related to events that purportedly happened 37 years ago, whereas a disqualifying conviction must occur within the last ten years preceding the candidate’s election.

They added that while the petitioners claimed that Adebutu and PDP scored the majority of lawful votes after APC’s unlawful votes were deducted and their own excluded votes added, they never proved the unlawful votes credited to Governor Abiodun or the source of their excluded votes, even as the figures in the petition (63,015 and 35,228) conflicted with the figures in their witness’ report (62,998 and 34,368)

Finally, while indicating that the petitioners provided no admissible evidence to prove their allegations of vote-buying against Governor Abiodun, the respondents drew the tribunal’s attention to the massive and proven details of vote-buying conducted by Adebutu during the election, which had been established in two police investigation reports and for which Adebutu (now at large) and other PDP chieftains were standing criminal trial.

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The party was flayed for its failure to comply with court’s directive which stipulates that documents scheduled to be presented before the court ought to have been tendered from the bar for parties involved to scrutinize and authenticate.

At the resumption of proceeding, counsel to the PDP and Oladipupo Adebutu, Godwin Uche, SAN, had informed the tribunal of the readiness of his team to formally commence trial immediately, adding that they had filled the list of their scheduled of documents before the panel and had also physically brought all the said documents before it.

Consequently, counsel to the 1st Respondent (INEC), Remi Olatumura, SAN, in his objection on the point of law, cautioned the move to commit such blunder, as he said while his team was ready to move on with the case, it was imperative for the petitioner to have shown the documents to all the parties before then, insisting that he had not set his eye on the document for authentication.

Olatumura further said he owed his client the duty to confirm and certify that those documents actually emanated from INEC and accordingly scrutinise it.

In the same vein, counsel to the 2nd Respondent (Governor Dapo Abiodun), Kehinde Ogunwunmiju, SAN, opined that going by the volume of the tendered documents and in line with procedure rules, which remained always sacrosanct, the over 6000 documents ought to have been presented from the bar earlier for the benefit of the parties to view and confirm its validity.

Ogunwunmiju also informed the tribunal that the PDP’s counsel had accordingly followed the procedure rules in a similar case involving the duo in Ebonyi State but decided to act otherwise in Ogun State.

He then stressed that the parties needed more time to check and authenticate the documents, arguing that 24 hours might not be feasible and realistic to scrutinize the voluminous documents, as he also called for the list of witnesses at least 24 hours before the commencement of the case, in which PDP also failed to comply.

Corroborating the positions of the counsels to the first and the second Respondents, Kunle Kalejaiye, SAN, who represented the 3rd Respondent (APC) unequivocally submitted: “We have to look at the documents. The Tribunal has the responsibility to ensure that the needful is done. These are very serious and strategic documents. They should have invited us to come and view.

“I adopt the submissions of the 1st and 2nd respondents accordingly that the undisputed documents should be admitted from the bar. For documents to be undisputed, such must have been seen by all parties involved in the case. “These documents have been sought for many months. We should not be railroad to admittance of documents. I urge your Lordship to give us reasonable time to inspect.”

He subsequently prayed the court to grant two days leave for proper scrutiny of the documents.

Ruling on the arguments, the chairman of the Tribunal, Hon. Justice H.N. Kunaza, agreed on the point of law that the PDP had failed to comply with the court’s directive, which is sacrosanct, that the tendered documents ought to have been presented from the bar for the purpose of thorough verification and authentication by all the parties involved.

He, as well, queried the reason why Uche refused to comply with the procedure rules in Ogun State, whereas he followed the same rules in a similar case in Ebonyi.

In his words: “We cannot force them to admit documents they have not seen. All of you should look at the documents.”

The tribunal’s chairman, therefore, granted the parties two days to thoroughly scrutinize the documents accordingly, as the case was  adjourned till Thursday, July 6, for continuation of hearing.

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