Former National Chairman of the Action Alliance (AA) Mr Kenneth Udeze and two other former members of the party, Messes James Vernibe and Adeloye Ogunmodede on Thursday appeared before an Osun State Magistrate Court sitting in Osogbo, the state capital over allegations of conspiracy, forgery and penury.
The suspects had since 2018 been standing trial for allegedly altering the name of Hon Adekunle Rufai Omoaje who emerged the governorship candidate of the AA in the party’s governorship primary election held on 23rd July, 2018.
Ogunmodede who was the state chairman of the party at the time the crime was allegedly committed allegedly replaced the name of Omoaje with his own name with the connivance of both Udeze and Vernibe, who were both the national chairman and national secretary of the party respectively at the time
The trio were in 2020 arraigned before Magistrate Bola Ajanaku but the court could not adjudicate on the matter as both the plaintiff and the defendants expressed their readiness to present witnesses to testify before the court.
However, Udeze who is currently on bail did not appear at the two previous sittings of the court on the ground that he had health challenge was in court on Thursday with the two other suspects.
Testifying before the court presided over by Magistrate Bola Ajanaku, Ogunmodede denied altering the documents of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and those of the party, saying that the primary election that produced him was held in two different locations within the state in one day, a claim that was however faulted by the counsel to the plaintiff.
Ogunmodede admitted that copy of the governorship primary election of the party was not presented to the court, just as he admitted that an official of INEC identified as Mr Ishola supervised the primary election.
The trial magistrate, Mrs Ajanaku however adjourned the case to 14th August for further defence.
