A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Kunle Adegoke, has backed the withdrawal of petitions challenging the outcome of the 2026 Osun State governorship election, saying the decision will help preserve peace, reduce political tension and save public funds.
Adegoke argued that prolonged litigation over the election could leave the state in a prolonged atmosphere of uncertainty, distract the government from its responsibilities and heighten hostility among supporters of rival political parties.
He made the submission on Thursday while appearing on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State, where he discussed the implications of the withdrawal of petitions against Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the August 15 governorship election.
According to the legal practitioner, election disputes taken before tribunals often create tension across the affected state because uncertainty over the eventual outcome can affect both those in government and the general population.
He said a governor whose mandate is being challenged in court could become distracted by the litigation and struggle to give full attention to governance.
“When you go to the tribunal to challenge the result of an election, the entire state will be on the edge. You will discover that everybody, not only the elected governor or whomsoever, will be so shifty in terms of performance and what have you, because it doesn’t allow such an elected person to concentrate on the business of governance,” he said.
Adegoke added that ordinary citizens were also affected by prolonged election disputes, as they would remain anxious while awaiting the outcome of the judicial process.
He warned that the uncertainty could create an opportunity for violent elements to exploit political divisions and attack supporters of opposing parties.
“The same thing happens to the mass of the people who participated in the election. Everybody will be eager, will be pensive, expecting what will be the outcome of the tribunal. And you discover that violent elements will take that opportunity to be attacking one another, killing people, maiming,” he said.
The SAN recalled previous election disputes in Osun, noting that prolonged litigation had, in the past, been accompanied by violence and destruction of property.
“For the three and a half years that we were at the tribunal, people were being killed, people were being maimed, properties were being destroyed,” he stated.
He said the experience should encourage political actors to avoid actions capable of prolonging tension whenever there was an opportunity to resolve electoral disagreements peacefully.
Adegoke stressed that political violence often has its greatest impact on ordinary citizens rather than the politicians directly involved in electoral contests.
“The people that are being killed, the majority of them are poor people. So who did not have any grievance against one another until this political something came up?” he asked.
He also highlighted the financial implications of prolonged election litigation, saying the tribunal process and associated administrative arrangements require significant public expenditure.
“Rather than even using taxpayers’ money, because for the tribunal to be maintained, for the process to go smoothly and what have you, it costs the government a lot of money. So we can avoid all this. You know, the economy has not been good enough,” Adegoke said.
He maintained that public resources should not be unnecessarily committed to managing the fallout from political disputes, particularly at a time when economic hardship continues to affect many Nigerians.
The SAN acknowledged that politicians were naturally inclined to defend their interests and principles through legal means, especially where they believed that integrity and the interests of the people were at stake.
“We are fighters, and that is what we very enjoy also, when it is based on principles, when it is based on integrity and the protection of the interest of the masses, which is number one to us,” he said.
However, he said the broader interests of the people of Osun should take precedence in the circumstances surrounding the election.
“But in this instance, we believe that in the interest of the masses, the polity will be better protected by us allowing this particular instance to just go by,” he added.
Explaining the decision not to proceed with the tribunal process, Adegoke said the move was also aimed at protecting political supporters from possible attacks.
“That’s why we decided not to go to the tribunal. We didn’t want to complicate things further. If we were at the tribunal now, you can imagine what would have been happening. They will be hounding our people. Our people will be attacking them,” he said.
Adegoke condemned the use of violence in political activities, particularly attacks carried out by individuals under the guise of political participation.
He criticised the activities of “hooligans who in the name of political participation resort to violence,” stressing that political engagement must remain within the bounds of the law.
The SAN also called on governments and political leaders to ensure that laws enacted to protect citizens were effectively enforced.
“There are certain laws made to protect the interest of the people but which the government has not been implementing,” he said.
Adegoke further urged politicians to exercise restraint in their public statements and conduct, stressing that public office requires maturity, decorum and responsibility.
“The public office is not a place of our temper. It’s a place of decorum, of controlling one’s abilities, you know, to respond to issues. We shouldn’t let events around us dictate how we respond. We are the ones that must determine how we respond to issues and developments around us,” he said.
On a statement attributed to Senator Fadahunsi, Adegoke said he would not defend the remark but noted that the senator had apologised and withdrawn it.
“I don’t want to justify the statement made by Senator Fadamsi. I’m not holding his brief. It’s a statement that has been wrongly condemned. That doesn’t mean that it’s not a seasoned politician,” he said.
He emphasised that politicians seeking public office must understand that their ultimate responsibility is to govern and protect the lives of citizens irrespective of their political affiliations.
“We want to govern the people, want to govern living beings, not corpses, not dead bodies. So to that extent definitely, the people that are going to be killed, whether in Accord or in APC, PDP or elsewhere, they are our brothers and sisters,” Adegoke said.
He added that even individuals regarded as violent or having undesirable character should not be subjected to death, arguing that the responsibility of society was to seek their rehabilitation.
“Some of them might be violent, some of them might be people of less desirable character, but we don’t have the mandate to sentence them to death. Ours is to aspire to reform them,” he said.
Adegoke said withdrawing the petitions offered Osun an opportunity to reduce political tension and redirect attention to governance, following the disputes that emerged after the August 15 election.
The election was won by Adeleke, who was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) with 511,067 votes, while the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, secured 444,815 votes.
Petitions purportedly filed by the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were subsequently displayed at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo.
However, both parties denied authorising the petitions.
The APC said its legal team, after consultations with Oyebamiji and party leaders, resolved not to challenge the election in the interest of peace.
Similarly, the PDP said its candidate, Adebayo Adedamola, had not authorised any legal challenge to the election.
