The Court of Appeal sitting in Akure, has reserved its ruling on an application filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) seeking to relist a previously dismissed appeal involving the party’s sacked local government chairmen in Osun State.
It reached this decision after hearing arguments of the counsel of the APC, Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), and the Action People’s Party (APP).
The appellants, representing the sacked chairmen, are requesting the court to reinstate the appeal which was earlier struck out by the same court in January 2025 due to lack of diligent prosecution by the APC, for proper hearing and determination.
During proceedings, counsel to OSSIEC, Chief Musibau Adetunbi, SAN, urged the court to take judicial notice of its earlier judgment dismissing the appeal.
He argued that APC’s counsel, Muhydeen Adeoye cannot claim loss of communication with his client, as there is documented evidence, filed as marked exhibits, indicating that he was actively filing briefs in other related cases at the time.
“These exhibits show that communication between the counsel and his client continued during the relevant period, contradicting the claim of being incommunicado,” Adetunbi told the court.
After listening to the submissions from all parties, the three-member panel led by Justice O.F. Omoleye announced that ruling on the application would be delivered at a later date, which is yet to be disclosed.
It will be recalled that in February 2025, the sacked APC chairmen forcefully occupied several local government secretariats across Osun State with the backing of security operatives.
The move was widely criticized as unconstitutional and a violation of due process, drawing condemnation from various stakeholders who described the action as an affront to the rule of law.
