The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Osun State, Senator Iyiola Omisore, has expressed optimism that he would be declared the governor of the state by the Election Petitions Tribunal hearing his petition against Governor Rauf Aregbesola.
Omisore said this in an interview with journalists after the proceedings at the tribunal in Osogbo on Friday.
Omisore had earlier in the day said the same thing at the summit organised by some Yoruba elders at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife that he would emerge victorious very soon.
Asked if he had confidence in the tribunal, the PDP candidate said that he would not have approached the panel if there were no evidence that the August 9th governorship poll was rigged by the All Progressives Congress.
He said, “I am very hopeful that justice will be done. I want to urge our people not to lose hope. We have a good case and that was why we came to the tribunal. We are law abiding people. We refused to be provoked when they kept attacking our people even after the election.
“Very soon, we will retrieve our stolen mandate from the thieves who robbed us. Osun, Oyo, Ogun and Lagos will come track to the PDP fold in 2015 and then the South West will experience speedy development.”
But the Director of Publicity of the APC in Osun State, Mr. Kunle Oyatomi, when contacted advised Omisore to stop deluding himself. The APC’s spokesperson said that Aregbesola won the election convincingly despite the PDP’s tricks and the attempts to rig the poll.
According to him, the election was used by the people of the state to pay back Argebsola for his numerous achievements in his first term despite the meager resources available.
He said, “Omisore has no mandate anywhere. Ask him if he ever won election in his adult life. The senatorial seat was once awarded him from the prison.
“In 2011, he thought he had enough to win back the seat, he could not even win his ward.
“In 2014, he overrated himself, he lost woefully, even with all the federal support – the military, hooded operatives of the Department of State Security, the police and scandalous money.
“He should know by now, that the reality in the State of Osun is the All Progressives Congress.”
Omisore’s counsel, Mr. Nathaniel Oke (SAN), had applied to Justice Elizabeth Ikpejime-led tribunal to adjourn the sitting of the the panel to Monday for the continuation of the hearing of the petition.
The counsel premised the application on the alleged refusal of the Independent National Electoral Commission to make ballot papers used for the election available for the use of the petitioner.
Oke said that Omisore needed the materials to further prove his case before the panel but INEC said the documents would be made available on Monday.
Mr. Charles Edosomwan, who is the counsel to the first respondent ( Aregbesola) and the APC’s counsel, Mr. Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), raised objections to the application for adjournment.
