BY TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
The Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State has directed its former state chairman, Soji Adagunodo, the incumbent
South West National Vice Chairman of the party, to immediately withdraw the court case he instituted against the party on its chairmanship tussle in Osun, warning that the case has been hijacked by the All Progressives Congress in the state.
In a statement on Saturday, the party also accused the outgoing governor of the state, Gboyega Oyetola of planning to influence the judiciary on the pending court case in a bid to truncate the swearing in of Ademola Adeleke as the Governor of the state on November 27, 2022.
The PDP said all constitutional steps to actualise November 27 handover date would be explored, and declared that it was ready to petition the National Judicial Council on the apparent unprofessional conduct of the presiding judge, especially in the last sitting on the case.
The statement signed by the State Caretaker Chairman of the party, Adekunle Akindele, posited that Adagunodo has been cleared by the National Executive Committee of the PDP on some allegations during his party chairmanship and should therefore withdraw the case without further delay.
“The party had gathered on good authority that Hon Adagunodo claimed he was not issued an official letter of clearance by the party’s NEC, hence his continuation of the court processes,” the statement disclosed, noting that the NEC clearance was the reason Adagunodo was able to contest and emerge as the South West National Vice Chairmanship of the PDP, and that there is no further political or legal basis for non-withdrawal of the suit.
While justifying calls for the withdrawal of the suit, the PDP called the attention of the Vice Chairman South West to fact that the case has emerged as the main tool of the APC to attempt disruption of November 27, 2022 swearing in ceremony.
“To avoid becoming part of the plot to scuttle the will of Osun people and to prove that he is indeed not available for the APC reactionary agenda, Hon Adagunodo should urgently kick-start the process of case withdrawal,” the statement posited.
The party further warned that failure to close the case will confirm allegations and alleged grand coalition among the APC, Adagunodo and a section of the judiciary to throw Osun into a constitutional crisis, a development the party vowed to legally resist.
The statement hinted that it has set machinery in motion to petition the NJC over the conduct of the presiding judge as his conduct at the last sitting echoed the boast on social media by Oyetola’s supporters that November 27, 2022 will not hold.
“We are compiling all the observed unprofessional activities on this particular matter and we will duly approach the NJC. We want to strongly advice the state judicial leadership to be sensitive to the conduct of some of its officials. The judiciary should not allow itself to be used against the will of Osun people”, Akindele said.
