The Peoples Democratic Party candidate in the June 20, 2026, governorship election in Ekiti State, Dr Oluwole Oluyede, has formally withdrawn the petition he filed before the election petition tribunal to challenge the re-election of Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress.
Consequently, the tribunal, at its first sitting in Ado Ekiti on Tuesday, struck out the petition in line with the petitioner’s wish.
Oluyede had filed a motion of withdrawal of the petition before the three-member panel of judges comprising Justices Abubakar Idris Kutigi, Aminu Tukur and Maurice Okediya.
His counsel, Mr Paul Komolafe, who also represented the PDP at the tribunal sitting, moved the motion to withdraw the petition, following which the tribunal chairman, Justice Kutigi, struck it out.
Counsel for Oyebanji and the APC, Dr Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN) and counsel for the Independent National Electoral Commission, Mr Sulaiman Ibrahim, did not oppose the motion of the petitioners (Oluyede and PDP) to withdraw their petition from the tribunal.
Oluyede, in a chat with journalists after the petition he filed was struck out by the tribunal upon his request, said, “My decision to withdraw the petition was based on the fact that what Ekiti and Nigeria need now is to seek the way forward.
“It’s not easy to withdraw your petition when you know you have a case, but I took the action at the request of people who are important to me, I mean President Bola Tinubu and several advisers.
“They have all asked me to withdraw the matter and advised that everybody should come together and let the President win the next election and bring Ekiti forward.
“We have a lot of things to do in Ekiti, and it will take the efforts of everybody. It should not be a partisan thing.
“I am a member of the PDP and remain a member, and we have an election in January for President Tinubu.
“Governor Oyebanji too has extended a hand of friendship across to me, and we will work together when the election comes and see how things go. It’s just for the betterment of Ekiti and Nigeria,” Oluyede said.
The tribunal, however, adjourned its sitting to Thursday for ruling on the pre-hearing report by parties in the case and Monday, September 14, for the hearing of the substantive petitions filed by the Social Democratic Party and its candidate, Mr Isaac Adebayo Alade; and Action Alliance and its candidate, Mr Matthew Olu Omotoso.
The two parties and their candidates are challenging the return of Oyebanji as the winner of the governorship election by INEC.
The tribunal Chairman, Justice Kutigi, advised the petitioners’ counsel to ensure that the respondents were served in good time and also bring the witnesses to court on Monday for the commencement of hearing of the petition.
Oyebanji was declared the winner of the Ekiti governorship poll by the INEC after polling a total of 319,224 votes, with Oluyede garnering 40,543 votes.
African Democratic Congress candidate, Chief Dare Bejide, came third with 12,872 votes.
The SDP candidate, Alade, polled 179 votes while the AA candidate, Omotoso, obtained 126 votes in the election.
