The Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, has dismissed the petition filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) challenging the victory of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Hon. Folajimi Oyekunle, in the August 16, 2025 Ibadan North Federal Constituency by-election.
The SDP had approached the tribunal seeking the nullification of the by-election that produced Oyekunle as winner, urging the court to instead declare its own candidate as the rightful victor. In the alternative, the party prayed the tribunal to cancel the election and order a fresh or supplementary poll in affected polling units within the constituency.
In its petition, the SDP alleged that the conduct of the election and the subsequent return of Hon. Oyekunle were vitiated by non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2022. The party maintained that the alleged irregularities substantially affected the outcome of the by-election and warranted judicial intervention.
However, counsel to Hon. Folajimi Oyekunle and the PDP, Tunji Ogunrinde, SAN, raised a preliminary objection challenging the competence of the petition. Ogunrinde argued that the petition was fundamentally defective, stressing that the petitioner failed to join the candidate whose election was being challenged as a necessary party to the suit.
The senior advocate urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition in its entirety, submitting that the omission was fatal and robbed the tribunal of the jurisdiction to entertain the claims of the petitioner. He further contended that the SDP failed to discharge the burden of proof placed on it by law.
Delivering judgment on Wednesday in the petition marked EPT/OY/HR/01/2025, the three-man tribunal, headed by Justice A. M. Yakubu, upheld the objections raised by the respondents and dismissed the SDP’s petition.
In its ruling, the tribunal held that the petitioner failed to prove the facts and grounds upon which the petition was founded. The panel further ruled that the evidence presented by the sole witness called by the SDP was contradictory, unreliable, and inadmissible in law.
The tribunal noted that election petitions are sui generis and must be proved strictly in accordance with the law. It emphasized that allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act must be backed by credible, cogent, and convincing evidence, which the petitioner failed to provide.
Consequently, the tribunal dismissed the petition for lacking merit and affirmed the victory of Hon. Folajimi Oyekunle as the duly elected member representing Ibadan North Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.
In addition, the tribunal awarded a cost of N2 million in favour of the PDP and its candidate against the SDP.
The judgment brings to an end the legal challenge arising from the Ibadan North Federal Constituency by-election, further consolidating the PDP’s hold on the seat.
