PEOPLES GAZETTE
The PDP and its guber candidate want the tribunal to disqualify Mr Sanwo-Olu based on the allegation of submitting fake GCE result to INEC.
The Peoples Democratic Party and its governorship candidate, Abdul-Azeez Adediran (Jandor), have submitted a petition before the Lagos governorship election petitions tribunal asking it to disqualify Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and nullify his governorship victory over alleged fake GCE result.
The alleged fake exam result was submitted to INEC during his first-term governorship bid.
Mr Adediran and PDP alleged that Mr Sanwo-Olu failed to attach a copy of the GCE O’Level result he claimed to obtain in 1981 along with his form EC9 as required by the Electoral Act 2022, stressing “this development sparked a curiosity, with Adediran and PDP applying for the CTC of Governor Sanwo-Olu 2019 from CF001.”
The petition explained, “It was then discovered that a statement of result issued by Ijebu Ife Community Grammar School, Ijebu-Ife for May/June 1981 GCE O’Level examination with examination number 17624/118, which he submitted for his first term election as governor of the state was not confirmed by WAEC. When JANDOR and PDP approached WAEC for confirmation, they were directed to purchase the scratch card for verification of the WAEC result scratch card, which then confirmed the results as not emanating from WAEC. It came back to be a fake result.”
The party and Mr Adediran want the disqualification of the All Progressives Congress and the Labour Party candidates in the election for non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022.
In the petition marked EPT/LAG/GOV/01/2023 dated April 7, the petitioners challenged the outcome of the March 18 governorship election on the grounds of substantial non-compliance with the electoral law and the Independent National Electoral Commission guidelines.
While INEC is the first respondent, Mr Sanwo-Olu, Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat, APC, Labour’s candidate, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, and the Labour Party respectively, are the second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth respondents.
Besides non-compliance with relevant provisions of the Electoral Act 2022, Mr Adediran and PDP, in their petition, claim that at the time of the governorship election held on March 18, Messrs Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat, and Rhodes-Vivour were not qualified to contest.
The petitioners, therefore, prayed that all votes cast for them in the election be declared wasted.
“The second and third respondents, although not duly sponsored and not qualified, contested along with the first petitioner and others for the office of governor of Lagos state, the subject matter of this petition. Similarly, the fifth and sixth respondents, although not duly sponsored and not qualified, contested, along with the first petitioner and others the office of governor of Lagos state, the subject matter of this petition,” said PDP and its gubernatorial flag bearer.
