The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the September 22, 2018 governorship election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke has spoken on the controversy over his school certificate.
The Senator representing Osun West Senatorial District was dragged to court on an allegation that he does not possess a school leaving certificate as required by Section 177 (d) of the 1999 constitution.
On Thursday, an Osun State High Court sitting in Osogbo asked him to present his original certificate on Wednesday, August 1, 2018.
The presiding judge, Justice David Ademola declared that it would be inequitable not to allow the lawmaker to show his school leaving certificate to court if he has any.
Speaking to newsmen at the PDP secretariat on Thursday in Abuja, the Director, Media and Public Affairs of the Senator Ademola Adeleke Campaign Organisation, Olawale Rasheed, said there was no cause for alarm.
He said, “On the issue of school certificate, Section 177(c) of the Nigerian Constitution and Section 317 for interpretation on educational requirements for the office of the Governor are very clear and unambiguous. Senator Adeleke is eminently eligible and qualified to seek the office of a governor.
“The school, Ede Muslim High School (Formerly Ede Muslim Grammar school) he attended still exists in Ede, his hometown. We challenge those asking questions to go to the school and find out if he attended and finished at the school or not between 1976 and 1981.”
On the outcome of the primary election which the first runner-up, Akin Ogunbiyi is contesting, Rasheed said: “It is open to the public that the Osun PDP primary election was one of the most transparent in recent political history. The entire electoral activity was televised live and the counting was done in the open.
“The challenger requested for a recount and this was done twice. No process can be more open than what the Governor Dickson election committee did in Osun last Saturday. It is thus very disheartening that the said aspirant relied on spurious allegations to smear the party, her officials and the chosen candidate.
“Electoral contests within a political party are governed by rules. The party as an organization has internal mechanisms for resolving disputes arising from party primaries. Aggrieved aspirants are entitled to raise issues but within the bounds of party rules and processes. An appeal can be lodged, and the party will decide. In the case of Osun state, the aggrieved aspirant appealed against the result of the primary election.
“The party’s appeal panel after due consideration and examination of the appeal upheld the election of Senator Adeleke as the flag bearer of the party and subsequently forwarded his name officially as the party’s flag bearer to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC,” he added.
