Judgement Day: Appeal Court Confirms APC’s Defeat, Validates New Polls

A Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal in Akure on June 13, 2025, has confirmed the dismissal of the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s appeal, affirming the validity of the Chairmen and Councilors elected during the 2025 Osun Local Government polls.

In her decision, Presiding Justice Oyebisi Folayemi Omoleye stated that the conduct and conclusion of the new elections, along with the swearing-in of new council officials, have rendered the original dispute obsolete.

Omoleye recalled that the court had previously delivered a ruling on February 10, 2025, in Appeal No. CA/AK/270/2022, which involved essentially the same parties and issues.

“The appeal has already been dismissed. Moreover, the fresh local government elections held on February 22, 2025, and the inauguration of new Chairmen and Councilors have overtaken the subject of the case,” she noted.
“Reviving the appeal at this stage would serve no meaningful purpose.”

Citing legal precedents—including Baker Marine Nigeria Ltd v. Chevron Nigeria Ltd SCER (2006) and others—Omoleye emphasized that the application before the court was both procedurally defective and rendered useless by subsequent events.
“There is no longer a live issue in contention. The matter is, for all intents and purposes, a fait accompli,” she concluded, dismissing the application.

In a concurring judgment, Justice Obiorah added:
“With the appeal dismissed and no further challenge to the ruling of the lower court, that decision now stands as the definitive legal position on the status of the Local Government Council officials in Osun State.”

He further stated that claims of contempt or violations of the lower court’s order are based solely on the 3rd Respondent/Applicant’s interpretation of the actions of the 3rd Appellant/Respondent, particularly in relation to the conduct of the fresh elections after the original appeal was dismissed on January 13, 2025.