The legal team of the All Progressives Congress in Osun State has distanced itself from a petition purportedly filed by the party challenging the victory of Governor Ademola Adeleke in the August 15 governorship election.
One of the senior members of the APC legal team, Adekunle Adegoke, SAN, said on Monday that neither the party’s governorship candidate, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, nor the APC authorised the petition reportedly filed before the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.
Adegoke explained that the legal team, comprising several Senior Advocates of Nigeria and other legal experts, met with Oyebamiji and other party leaders shortly after the election results were announced to assess the outcome and determine the appropriate course of action.
According to him, the team identified grounds that could have been used to challenge the election result but ultimately advised the candidate against going to court.
He said the decision was influenced by the need to reduce political tension and promote peace in Osun State, stressing that the APC did not want to be seen as a party interested in prolonged litigation or unnecessary confrontation.
Adegoke said Oyebamiji accepted the recommendation and subsequently congratulated Adeleke without pressure or coercion.
He questioned why the APC candidate, after voluntarily accepting the decision and congratulating the governor, would turn around to authorise another petition challenging the same result.
The senior lawyer consequently disowned the petition displayed at the tribunal, describing those behind it as individuals allegedly acting without the authority of the APC or its candidate.
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Meanwhile, notices of two petitions challenging the August 15 governorship election were reportedly displayed on the notice board of the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo on Monday.
One of the petitions, numbered EPT/Os/Gov/01/2026, listed Oyebamiji and the APC as petitioners, while Governor Ademola Adeleke, the Accord Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission were named as respondents.
A second petition, EPT/Os/Gov/02/2026, listed the Peoples Democratic Party as the petitioner, with INEC, the Accord Party and Adeleke named as respondents.
The development has now created a dispute over the authenticity and authorisation of the petition reportedly filed in the name of the APC candidate and the party.
The APC legal team has maintained that it did not authorise the suit and that its decision remains to allow the electoral outcome to stand in the interest of peace and stability in the state.