The Osun state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has withdrawn its petition challenging the re-election of Ademola Adeleke, governor of the state, a day after the party’s legal team disowned the suit.
Counsel who filed the petition, Oluseyi Oyagbile, told The Nation that he withdrew the suit on Tuesday after receiving fresh instructions from his client and APC leaders, barely a day after the petition was displayed at the tribunal.
“My client and leaders of APC reached out to me this morning to withdraw the petition I filed on their behalf. I have withdrawn the petition,” he said.
“Before I do so, I made them send WhatsApp messages to me giving the instruction so that it will not be a matter of controversy again.”
Kola Olabisi, spokesperson for the Osun APC, confirmed the withdrawal on Tuesday.
“Well, I am not a member of the legal team; I am a spokesman of the party. But it is true that the petition has been withdrawn. That’s the story,” Olabisi said.
The petition, marked EPT/OS/GOV/01/2026, was displayed on the notice board of the Osun state governorship election petition tribunal in Osogbo on Monday.
The suit listed Bola Oyebamiji, the APC governorship candidate, and the party as petitioners, while Adeleke, Accord and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were named as respondents.
The withdrawal followed conflicting positions within the APC over whether the petition was authorised by the party and its candidate.
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Osun Central senatorial candidate in the forthcoming 2027 polls, Adekunle Adegoke, who is also one of the leaders of the APC legal team, had on Monday said the lawyers did not authorise any petition challenging Adeleke’s victory.
Adegoke said the legal team, led by Abiodun Layoonu, Yomi Aliyu, himself and Muritala Abdulrasheed, SANs, advised Oyebamiji against approaching the tribunal after the August 15 election.
“Right from the second day of the election, at the level of the legal team being led by about four senior advocates of Nigeria, Dr Biodun Layoonu (SAN), Dr Yomi Aliyu (SAN), myself, Kunle Adegoke (SAN) and Dr Muritala Abdulrasheed (SAN),” Adegoke said.
He said the lawyers advised Oyebamiji that “the best in this circumstance is for us not to go to the tribunal”.
Adegoke described the petition displayed at the tribunal as a document filed by individuals “masquerading as APC lawyers”.
“I want to be on record that the APC legal team has denounced the bundle of papers filed by some individuals masquerading as APC lawyers. It was not authorised by APC as a party or its candidate,” he said.
The withdrawal came alongside a separate denial by Adebayo Adedamola, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the August 15 election, who also disowned a petition filed in his name against Adeleke.
Adeleke was declared the winner of the August 15 governorship election after securing 511,067 votes.