EXCLUSIVE: After PREMIUM TIMES report, Adebutu sues Malami, IGP, APC and others over alleged vote-buying saga
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in the 2023 general election in Ogun State, Oladipupo Adebutu, has sued the federation’s Attorney General, Abubakar Malami, Inspector General of the police, Usman Baba, Director of the State Security Services (SSS), Yusuf Bichi, and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, following allegations of vote buying against him.
The PDP candidate also joined state All Progressives Congress (APC) President Yemi Sanusi in the pursuit.
PREMIUM TIMES obtained a copy of the original petition filed by Mr Adebutu nearly 12 hours after this newspaper exclusively reported police findings that he had deployed two billion naira to incite voters to the entire state to vote for him and his party in the March 18 election. .
The findings are contained in the interim report of the police investigation into a petition addressed to the Inspector General of Police by the Chairman of the Ogun State APC.
Mr. Adebutu, who ultimately lost the election after securing 262,383 votes to emerge second to APC Governor Dapo Abiodun, who garnered 276,298 votes, filed a petition in court.
In a petition dated March 18, the day of the election, and addressed to the Inspector General of Police, the chairman of the APC in the state accused the PDP candidate of distributing ATM cards pre-loaded with 10,000 naira to entice voters on election day.
The petition has now been investigated by a team led by Mohammed Babakura, Deputy Commissioner of Police at the Criminal Investigation Department of Abeokuta Police.
After this report was made public in the early hours of Monday by this newspaper, PREMIUM TIMES obtained Mr. Adebutu's court documents the same day.
In the petition, Mr. Adebutu noted that the APC had written the petition to Messrs. Malami and the EFCC, on which the police had invited him, allegedly with the intention of arresting him and distracting him from pursuing his petition against Governor Dapo Abiodun in the Electoral Claims Tribunal.
Mr. Adebutu begs the court to prevent any of the respondents (apart from the APC president) from arresting him, an act he described as a ploy to prevent him from pursuing his electoral petition against the governor.
READ ALSO:In the petition, Mr. Adebutu requests, “A STATEMENT that the invitation of the petitioner for the purpose of arresting and detaining him to prevent him from pursuing his election as governor petition against the statement and the return of Dapo Abiodun of All Progressives Congress as the winner of the March 18, 2023 Ogun gubernatorial election based on the frivolous, baseless and malicious petition written by the 5th Respondent to the 1st and 4th Respondents constitutes a flagrant violation of the Applicants' rights to personal dignity and personal liberty and freedom of movement guaranteed by Articles 34(1), 35(1) and 36 of the 1999 FRN Constitution as amended and Articles 5 and 6 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Ratification and Enforcement)."
The Politician further requested “AN INJUNCTIVE ORDER enjoining the 1st through 4th Defendants, either by themselves or by servants, agents, officers, privates or assigns, regardless of their describing, arresting, detaining or confirming in any way or manner describing or infringing the fundamental human rights of the applicants guaranteed by Chapter IV of the FRN Constitution of 1999 as amended and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act on the basis of the Frivolous, Baseless and Malicious Motion written by the 5th Defendant to the 1st and 4th Defendants against the Applicant seeking to prevent and restrain the petitioner from pursuing and pursuing his petition for the election of Governor against Dapo Abiodun of the APC in the Ogun State Governorate Electoral Tribunal sitting in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
"Alternatively, AN ORDER of this Honorable Court ordering the 2nd through 4th Defendants to take the Petitioner's statement, interrogate him and release him on a self-confessed basis to enable him to pursue his petition for election of the Governor of Ogun State against Dapo Abiodun and the All Progressives Congress (APC).And remain other actions against...
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in the 2023 general election in Ogun State, Oladipupo Adebutu, has sued the federation’s Attorney General, Abubakar Malami, Inspector General of the police, Usman Baba, Director of the State Security Services (SSS), Yusuf Bichi, and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, following allegations of vote buying against him.
The PDP candidate also joined state All Progressives Congress (APC) President Yemi Sanusi in the pursuit.
PREMIUM TIMES obtained a copy of the original petition filed by Mr Adebutu nearly 12 hours after this newspaper exclusively reported police findings that he had deployed two billion naira to incite voters to the entire state to vote for him and his party in the March 18 election. .
The findings are contained in the interim report of the police investigation into a petition addressed to the Inspector General of Police by the Chairman of the Ogun State APC.
Mr. Adebutu, who ultimately lost the election after securing 262,383 votes to emerge second to APC Governor Dapo Abiodun, who garnered 276,298 votes, filed a petition in court.
In a petition dated March 18, the day of the election, and addressed to the Inspector General of Police, the chairman of the APC in the state accused the PDP candidate of distributing ATM cards pre-loaded with 10,000 naira to entice voters on election day.
The petition has now been investigated by a team led by Mohammed Babakura, Deputy Commissioner of Police at the Criminal Investigation Department of Abeokuta Police.
After this report was made public in the early hours of Monday by this newspaper, PREMIUM TIMES obtained Mr. Adebutu's court documents the same day.
In the petition, Mr. Adebutu noted that the APC had written the petition to Messrs. Malami and the EFCC, on which the police had invited him, allegedly with the intention of arresting him and distracting him from pursuing his petition against Governor Dapo Abiodun in the Electoral Claims Tribunal.
Mr. Adebutu begs the court to prevent any of the respondents (apart from the APC president) from arresting him, an act he described as a ploy to prevent him from pursuing his electoral petition against the governor.
READ ALSO:In the petition, Mr. Adebutu requests, “A STATEMENT that the invitation of the petitioner for the purpose of arresting and detaining him to prevent him from pursuing his election as governor petition against the statement and the return of Dapo Abiodun of All Progressives Congress as the winner of the March 18, 2023 Ogun gubernatorial election based on the frivolous, baseless and malicious petition written by the 5th Respondent to the 1st and 4th Respondents constitutes a flagrant violation of the Applicants' rights to personal dignity and personal liberty and freedom of movement guaranteed by Articles 34(1), 35(1) and 36 of the 1999 FRN Constitution as amended and Articles 5 and 6 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Ratification and Enforcement)."
The Politician further requested “AN INJUNCTIVE ORDER enjoining the 1st through 4th Defendants, either by themselves or by servants, agents, officers, privates or assigns, regardless of their describing, arresting, detaining or confirming in any way or manner describing or infringing the fundamental human rights of the applicants guaranteed by Chapter IV of the FRN Constitution of 1999 as amended and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act on the basis of the Frivolous, Baseless and Malicious Motion written by the 5th Defendant to the 1st and 4th Defendants against the Applicant seeking to prevent and restrain the petitioner from pursuing and pursuing his petition for the election of Governor against Dapo Abiodun of the APC in the Ogun State Governorate Electoral Tribunal sitting in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
"Alternatively, AN ORDER of this Honorable Court ordering the 2nd through 4th Defendants to take the Petitioner's statement, interrogate him and release him on a self-confessed basis to enable him to pursue his petition for election of the Governor of Ogun State against Dapo Abiodun and the All Progressives Congress (APC).And remain other actions against...
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