Ogun 2027: YPP, BOOT challenge Yayi suit withdrawal claim

The Ogun State chapters of the Young Progressives Party and the BOOT Party have denied withdrawing their legal challenge to the governorship candidacy of the All Progressives Congress candidate, Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi.

The state chairman of the YPP, Solomon Adeyemi, and his BOOT Party counterpart, Abiodun Akerele, made the clarification at a joint press conference on Monday in Abeokuta.

The parties were reacting to a statement issued by Adeola’s media adviser, Chief Kayode Odunaro, which claimed that major court cases challenging the senator’s 2027 APC governorship candidacy had been discontinued.

Odunaro had recently said four major suits instituted against Adeola had been wholly discontinued by the litigants of their own accord.

He listed the suits to include FHC/ABJ/CS/844/26, instituted by Akerele, Adeyemi, Ola Olamide Emmanuel of the Action Democratic Party, Ayinde Oluwayemisi Abiola, a member of the ADP, and Fesomade Gbadebo, a member of the Labour Party, against Adeola, the Independent National Electoral Commission and the APC.

The two party chairmen described the claim as misleading, insisting that they neither authorised nor consented to the withdrawal, compromise or discontinuance of their legal challenge.

Speaking on behalf of the two parties, Akerele said they were not contacted or informed before the purported discontinuance was announced publicly.

He explained, “Where a legal proceeding involves several plaintiffs, the public deserves to know who took what step, under whose authority, and in what circumstances.

“We will not allow our names, positions, and legitimate interests to be used to create the impression that we voluntarily abandoned our legal rights when, in fact, we were not consulted or informed.

“We are law-abiding citizens and political actors. We believe firmly in the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. Our position is not based on personal hatred or political vendetta against Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola.

“Our concern is that questions surrounding eligibility, constitutional requirements, state of origin and political participation should be subjected to the appropriate judicial and constitutional processes.”

Akerele added, “We therefore reject any attempt to give the public the impression that the issues raised before the courts have simply disappeared because certain individuals may have taken steps which were not authorised by all parties involved.

“A political press statement cannot determine the status of a court case. The court record and lawful processes filed before the court are what should speak.

“We also wish to make it clear that neither of us authorised Senator Adeola’s media team, nor any other individual, to speak on our behalf or represent our position concerning the court proceedings.

“Any statement suggesting that we have become satisfied with the candidacy of Senator Adeola, abandoned our concerns, or decided to support his candidacy as a result of the alleged discontinuance is false and is hereby rejected.”

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The party chairmen called on President Bola Tinubu, as the national leader of the APC and President of Nigeria, to caution Adeola and members of his political circle against what they termed “misrepresentation, intimidation and undue pressure.”

They also expressed concern over developments that had created apprehension about the safety of persons connected with the matter.

They alleged that the appearance of unfamiliar persons around them and other developments had raised security concerns, urging security agencies to investigate any credible allegations of threats, surveillance or intimidation.

“We do not want the political contest ahead of the 2027 election to degenerate into threats, intimidation or violence.

“Senator Yayi’s political ambition must not be pursued at the expense of the peace, security or lives of Ogun State citizens. No political ambition is worth a drop of blood,” he said.

They stated that they had approached security authorities over the alleged attempt to withdraw the court proceedings, as well as their concerns regarding intimidation, threats and surveillance.

The chairmen urged the public, media organisations, political parties and other stakeholders to disregard any narrative suggesting that all legal challenges to Adeola’s candidacy had been voluntarily and unanimously abandoned.

“We will not be intimidated. We will not be coerced. We will not allow our names to be used to endorse a decision we did not authorise. And we will continue to defend our constitutional rights through peaceful and lawful means,” they said.

When contacted, Odunaro stated that the suits were withdrawn by the counsel who filed notices of discontinuance before the court, adding that his earlier statement was based on official court documents.

He said, “When their lawyer filed the notices of discontinuance, they gave all the defendants—Solomon Adeola, the Inspector-General of Police, APC, INEC and The Guardian newspaper—copies of it.

“It was what they gave to the senator that we used in writing our statement, and they are saying it as if Kayode Odunaro just woke up and wrote a statement. I wrote a statement from a court process filed by their lawyer. If they have issues with their lawyer, they should go and resolve it with him.”

Odunaro also dismissed the allegations of threats to life, maintaining that the dispute was strictly a legal matter and that the lawmaker would never engage in criminal acts.

“The senator does not have anything to do with them other than the case against him in court. He doesn’t have anything personal with them at all. So, if they have security challenges, maybe they should look among themselves.

“The good thing is that they said they have reported to the security forces. The security will investigate and confirm the veracity of their claim, but definitely, the senator will never be a party to such criminal acts,” Odunaro stated.