seems to have taken another dimension.
This followed the party's alleged disobedience to a court order
restraining it from conducting congress on Saturday.
An Osun State High Court, sitting in Ikirun had last Friday granted an
order of interim injunction restraining the former Deputy Governor of
the state, Senator Iyiola Omisore and his group within the Social
Democratic Party (SDP) from conducting congresses slated for Saturday
and Monday.
Four members of the party had earlier dragged Dr Iyiola Omisore,
Alhaji Shehu Musa, who is the National Secretary of the party, and the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) among two others to
court in a suit number, HIK/M.23/2018, asking the court to stop their
action pending the hearing of the motion on notice.
The presiding judge, Justice Jide Falola while ruling on the experte
motion said "in the spirit of reconciliation among parties, I hereby
make the following preservative orders:
"Both the Applicants and the Respondents shall uphold the supremacy of
the constitution of the party –Social Democratic Party, SDP as
contained in S. 2(1) of the constitution.
"Parties, especially the respondents shall maintain status quo ante
bellum inter duos, pending the hearing and determination of the motion
on notice for injection.
"Also, the rights of the applicants, as part of the State Executive
Council inaugurated on 16th February 2016 to discharge the duties,
privileges and responsibilities assigned to them by section 12, 6, and
10 of the constitution of the party are hereby preserved in order not
to cripple the operations of the party, pending the hearing and
determination of the motion on notice."
He thereafter adjourned the case to Tuesday, July 3, 2018 for hearing.
In a swift reaction, the Chairman of the National Electoral Panel for
Osun Congresses of the SDP, Mr Mba Ajah, the Secretary, Mr Rufus
Ayenigba, and the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party,
Alfa Mohammed, at a press conference in Osogbo on Saturday, said they
were not aware of the said court injunction, and resolved to go ahead
with the congresses.
Ajah said the congresses, which would culminate in an election of new
executives, were not aimed at removing anybody.
He admitted that the present party executives in the state were still
in the office and quickly added that their tenure would soon expire.
According to him, the party, in compliance with the directive of the
Independent National Electoral Commission that congresses be held
every four years, was conducting congresses in all states of the
federation.
However, the SDP chairman in Osun State, Mr. Ademola Ishola when
contacted, dissociated himself from the exercise, describing it as
illegal, and efforts in futility.
"We want to make it abundantly clear that, based on the court
pronouncement of Friday, June 29, we disassociate ourselves from the
illegal congress and we call on all genuine members of the SDP across
the state not to have anything to do with it.
"The party leaders cannot claim to be ignorant of the court order
because SDP's counsel, Kehinde Adesiyan, was in the court. We
sincerely hope that the court will not allow the temple of justice to
be trampled upon by those who believe they are above the law", Ishola
said.
Meanwhile, our Reporter on Sunday night learnt that there was a plan
by the party, at the instance of Senator Omisore to hurriedly organise
screening exercise and primaries after the completion of "congresses"
on Monday.
It was gathered that the primaries of the party has been fixed for
July 7 against the earlier announced date of July 18 without formal
notification to other aspirants.
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