The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to reinstate the name of Ladi Adebutu, governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State, on its list of candidates for the 2027 election within 24 hours.
The court, presided over by Justice Peter Lifu, ruled on Friday that INEC lacked the constitutional and statutory powers to unilaterally disqualify a candidate validly nominated by a political party or remove such candidate’s name from its official list without an order of court.
Justice Lifu declared Adebutu’s exclusion unlawful, unconstitutional, null and void, holding that the electoral umpire violated the PDP candidate’s fundamental right to fair hearing before taking the decision.
The judgment represents a major legal victory for Adebutu and the Ogun State PDP, while dealing a significant blow to INEC’s attempt to exclude him from the 2027 governorship race.
The judge also dismissed INEC’s preliminary objection challenging the competence of the suit filed by the PDP, clearing the way for the court to determine the substantive issues.
INEC Cannot Disqualify Candidates, Court Rules
In a strong pronouncement on the limits of INEC’s powers, Justice Lifu held that the commission could not assume the judicial authority to disqualify candidates nominated by political parties.
According to the judge, the power to disqualify a candidate after the submission of the candidate’s name rests with the Federal High Court or a State High Court.
“INEC does not have the power to remove names or disqualify any candidate on its own. The power to disqualify a candidate after the name has been forwarded resides with the FHC or State High Court,” he ruled.
The judge stressed that even where INEC believes that a candidate’s nomination was defective or that a name was wrongly included, the commission must approach a competent court for a determination rather than independently removing the candidate.
He further maintained that the exclusive power to nominate candidates for elections belongs to political parties, adding that neither INEC nor the courts could take over that responsibility.
“The effect of the above is that no authority can nominate a candidate or remove it,” the judge declared.
INEC Violated Adebutu’s Right To Fair Hearing
Justice Lifu held that INEC breached Adebutu’s right to fair hearing by excluding his name without giving him an opportunity to defend himself.
Describing fair hearing as a fundamental principle of Nigeria’s jurisprudence, the judge said no person’s vested right could be taken away without first allowing the affected individual to be heard.
“Adebutu was not accorded the right to be heard before INEC took the decision. Therefore, the right to fair hearing of the plaintiff is breached,” he ruled.
The court consequently resolved the issue of fair hearing in favour of the PDP and its governorship candidate.
How INEC Removed Adebutu’s Name
Recounting the circumstances that led to the litigation, the judge said Adebutu had previously contested the Ogun governorship election in 2019 and emerged as the PDP candidate in 2023.
He also participated in the party’s primary election for the 2027 governorship contest and was declared winner on May 24, 2026.
The court heard that the PDP published Adebutu’s name on August 29, 2026, without any challenge to his nomination.
However, when INEC published its list of governorship candidates on October 10, Adebutu’s name was conspicuously missing, although the name of his running mate appeared on the list.
The PDP subsequently wrote to INEC on October 14, through its national leadership, demanding the restoration of its candidate’s name, but the commission allegedly failed to act.
The party thereafter approached the court to challenge the exclusion.
Court Rejects INEC’s Defence Over Membership Register
The court also examined conflicting testimonies over the PDP membership register and the flash drive submitted to INEC.
The PDP’s National Organising Secretary, Bature, who testified as its first witness, told the court that the party submitted its membership register on April 22, 2026, in both hard copy and electronic format.
He said the register contained more than 30,000 members, including Adebutu, who registered as a party member on February 24, 2026.
Bature maintained that Adebutu’s membership had never been in doubt and that the flash drive presented by INEC in court was not the one submitted by the party.
He urged the court to compel INEC to restore Adebutu’s name.
However, INEC’s witness, Mustapha, a programme analyst with the commission, claimed that the candidate’s name was missing from the membership register examined by the commission before the publication of the final candidates’ list.
But under cross-examination, Mustapha admitted that he was not the official who received the flash drive from the PDP and could not personally confirm the contents of the device submitted by the party.
Justice Lifu faulted the commission’s evidence, describing the testimony of the PDP’s witness as unchallenged and uncontroverted.
The judge also questioned the inconsistency in INEC’s witness testimony, particularly his claim that Adebutu’s name was missing from the flash drive despite admitting that he did not personally receive it.
He consequently said the court would disregard the evidence of INEC’s witness.
Judge Warns Against Last-Minute Disqualification
In another significant aspect of the judgment, Justice Lifu questioned why INEC waited several months after the primary election before excluding Adebutu.
He noted that the PDP candidate was declared winner of the primary on May 24, 2026, without any timely challenge to the process.
The judge said INEC should have approached the court if it believed there were irregularities in the nomination rather than taking unilateral action months later.
He warned that allowing the commission to exercise such powers could create a dangerous precedent in which candidates could be disqualified on the eve of elections.
“If this is not resolved, there will be a day that INEC will disqualify a candidate a day to election. This must not be allowed. This would be an absurdity,” he declared.
The court also held that the commission’s action amounted to an afterthought, having waited about four months before taking steps to exclude the candidate.
Orders INEC To Correct October 10 List
Relying on the provisions of the Electoral Act, particularly Section 77(6), Justice Lifu said the PDP had demonstrated that Adebutu was a validly nominated member of the party whose name was contained in its membership register.
The judge noted that the evidence before the court indicated that Adebutu’s name appeared as number 1,536 on the register submitted by the party.
He held that INEC had failed to establish any lawful basis for excluding the candidate and had acted beyond its statutory powers.
“The defendant acted ultra vires. INEC has no power, either administratively or otherwise, to remove a name if a candidate was validly nominated by the owner.
“The removal is unlawful, unconstitutional and of no effect,” the judge declared.
Consequently, the court ordered INEC to rectify the list of candidates published on October 10, 2026, to reflect Adebutu’s name within 24 hours.
In a further consequential order, the court declared that INEC could not validly pronounce the result of the 2027 Ogun State governorship election without the participation of the plaintiffs, warning that any election conducted in violation of the order would be unconstitutional and of no effect.
The judgment effectively restores Adebutu’s position as the PDP’s governorship candidate in Ogun State, subject to any further legal developments.
