Salis, AD File Application To Stop Sanwo-Olu’s Inauguration

A file photo of Mr Owolabi Salis during a debate held in January 2019.

A governorship candidate in Lagos State, Mr Owolabi Salis, and his party, Alliance for Democracy (AD), have filed an application seeking to stop the swearing-in of Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu as the executive governor of Lagos State on May 29.

Salis and his party file the application on Thursday at the Lagos State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Ikeja.

The applicants asked the Tribunal to restrain the Chief Judge of Lagos, Justice Opeyemi Oke, from swearing-in the Governor-elect, pending the determination of the petition which was already before the Tribunal.

They filed the application pursuant to Section 6 Subsection (6b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and Paragraph 47 Subsections 1,2, and 3 of the First Schedule of the Rules of Procedure for Election Petitions 2010 (as amended).

The applicants alleged amongst other things that Mr Sanwo-Olu has a criminal record in the United States, and that he was of unsound mind.

They, therefore, asked the Tribunal to disqualify him from being sworn-in as governor.

Mr Sanwo-Olu, the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and INEC’s Resident Election Commissioner in Lagos, were listed as respondents to the application.

Other respondents included the Returning Officer for the Lagos State Governorship Election, the Commissioner of Police in the state, and the Nigerian Army.

The AD candidate was accompanied to the court by the candidate of the Labour Party, Professor Ifagbemi Awamaridi, who also contested the governorship election held on March 9, 2019.