PDP asks INEC to obey Appeal Court ruling on Ogun guber candidate

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to recognise Hon. Ladi Adebutu as its candidate for the March 2 governorship election in Ogun state in line with the ruling of the Appeal Court, instead of Senator Buruju Kashamu.

The party said Buruji was expelled from the party and didn’t participate in any of the processes leading to the emergence of candidates and wouldn’t have been the candidate of the party in the state.

Addressing newsmen in Abuja on Thursday, the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, argued that since the ruling of the Court of Appeal validating Hon. Ladi Adebutu as the PDP governorship candidate in the state, the Supreme Court or any other court has never overturned that extant ruling.

“The PDP cautions the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to insulate the commission from unnecessary controversies by immediately obeying the judgement of the Court of Appeal of December 18, 2018, and without further delay reflect Hon. Ladi Adebutu’s name on the ballot, in the interest of a hitch free and peaceful election in Ogun state.

“The PDP states that Hon. Ladi Adebutu’s name was duly and statutorily submitted to INEC after he won the governorship primary conducted by the National Working Committee (NWC), the only body empowered by law to conduct such primaries. The PDP has not substituted his nomination with anybody and such is not in our contemplation.

“INEC is therefore compelled to obey the law. It cannot choose for itself which judgement to obey and cannot operate in waiting, anticipation or contemplation of a non-existent consideration in the conduct of the Ogun governorship election,” Mr. Ologbondiyan said.