The new Appeal Court panel set up to hear cases pertaining to the Ondo State Governorship Election Tribunal has commenced sitting.

The Panel is expected to rule on the controversy surrounding the leadership tussle in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and how it affects the governorship election in Ondo State which has been scheduled for November 26.

Just as two factions of the party are laying claim to the National leadership of the PDP, the Ondo State chapter of the party is also deeply factionalised between Clement Faboyede and Biyi Poroye.

Both factions are claiming that their candidate is the right representative of the party.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has added the name of Jimoh Ibrahim to the list of the governorship candidates for the poll in line with court rulings, but agitations are still on for Ibrahim’s name to be removed and substituted with Eyitayo Jegede.

A new Appeal Court panel became necessary after the initial three-member panel handling the appeal cases withdrew.

The three justices disqualified themselves from the cases following a petition by Poroye, factional chairman of the PDP in Ondo state, alleging that the judges were likely to be biased against him.

In the petition written on October 31 and addressed to the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, the petitioner claimed that Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State had boasted in the public that he and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State have settled the judges to do their bidding.

Poroye further alleged that Justice Sankey was transferred from Yola where Eyitayo Jegede, the appellant, who is also a senior lawyer, was practicing law for the past 15 years and that when the justice arrived in Akure, Governor Mimiko boasted that he catered for her to the tune of 100 million Naira.