Court adjourns Ilana Omo Oodua’s suit to stop Osun guber election
…As group storms Osogbo, threatens to boycott 2023 election
The Yoruba self-determination group, Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide, on Tuesday stormed the Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, the state capital with respect to the suit filed against the 1999 Constitution and the conduct of the July 16 governorship election in Osun.
The suit filed by the members of the group in Osun to challenge the validity of the 1999 constitution of Nigeria was adjourned till May 24th over the absence of the presiding Judge.
Speaking, the legal representative of the group, Barrister Tolu Babaleye charged the government to recognise the peace-loving approach of the group for asking their demands through legal means.
Babaleye further said that the group has taken the best decision in approaching the court to make their demands and shun violence
According to Babaleye, “The group has taken the best decision. Instead of going to the street to cause a commotion to kill or destroy properties just like how we are having in some other parts of Nigeria.
“The people of Osun state are very wise, very intelligent, and highly civilised. They are just like the Yoruba kinsman. So we don’t believe in violence. The best way to address the issue is what we are doing now.
“It is only civilised people that go to court and the people that have come to the court shall be considered as civilised people. And I believe that the government must be able to recognise that.
“The government must give kudos to this group for not taking laws into their hands and for coming here to say the court is the last hope of the common man. I believe that we will get justice in this court,” he added
Meanwhile the Deputy Secretary General of the group, Dr. Kayode Akinwande said that the group don’t want election to hold in because the electorate had abandoned the election process due to the fraudulent act in the Constitution.
Akinwande said that the people in Osun are more than 4 million but the last election that brought the present government were not up to 500,000.
According to him, “We want a referendum where we will be able to tell people we don’t want to stay any longer in this country.
“We will continue doing this till 2023. We are doing it to governorship election now, when the general election comes up in 2023 we are going to boycott the election completely,” he added
On his part, the Osun state coordinator of the group, Comrade Lawal Hakeem, said the 1999 Constitution has failed to provide for equal rights for the citizenry.
Hakeem described the process of the 1999 Constitution as a fraudulent act which he said the Osun governorship election not must be held with it.
