The Federal High Court in Abuja has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to reinstate Ladi Adebutu as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 Ogun State governorship election.
The court ordered the electoral commission to restore Adebutu’s name to the list of candidates within 24 hours, ruling that INEC acted beyond its constitutional and statutory powers by excluding him.
Delivering judgment on Friday, Justice Peter Lifu held that INEC lacked the authority to unilaterally disqualify a candidate validly nominated by a political party.
The judge also ruled that the commission violated Adebutu’s right to fair hearing by removing his name from the candidates’ list without giving him an opportunity to defend himself.
Justice Lifu consequently declared the action unlawful, unconstitutional and of no effect.
The judgment followed a suit filed by the PDP and Adebutu after INEC omitted his name from the final list of candidates published on October 10, 2026.
Before determining the substantive issues, the court dismissed INEC’s preliminary objection challenging the competence of the suit, holding that the originating summons was properly signed and filed.
During the proceedings, Adebutu told the court that he participated in the PDP governorship primary conducted on May 24, 2026, and emerged as the party’s candidate.
He further argued that the party had published his name on August 29 without any objection from the electoral commission.
According to the plaintiffs, the PDP National Secretary subsequently wrote to INEC on October 14, requesting the restoration of Adebutu’s name, but the commission failed to act on the request.
The PDP’s National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, who testified before the court, maintained that Adebutu was a duly registered member of the party and that his name appeared in the membership register submitted to INEC on April 22, 2026.
Bature also told the court that Adebutu registered as a party member on February 24, 2026, and that his membership had never been disputed.
However, INEC’s witness, Mustapha Mohammed, a programme analyst with the commission, claimed that a search conducted before the publication of the final candidates’ list did not reveal Adebutu’s name in the PDP membership register.
Under cross-examination, Mohammed admitted that he was not the official who received the flash drive containing the membership register from the PDP and could not independently confirm its contents.
In his judgment, Justice Lifu held that INEC failed to establish that Adebutu’s name was absent from the membership register submitted by the PDP.
The judge also faulted the commission for failing to challenge the conduct of the party’s primary election within the legally prescribed period.
He questioned why INEC waited until August before raising concerns about the primary, noting that no suit had been filed within 14 days of the exercise to challenge Adebutu’s nomination.
The judge warned that allowing INEC to exercise powers not conferred on it by law could create a dangerous precedent where the commission might disqualify candidates shortly before an election.
On the extent of INEC’s powers, Justice Lifu maintained that the authority to nominate candidates rests exclusively with political parties, while the power to disqualify a candidate after nomination lies with the courts.
He further held that if INEC believed Adebutu was not qualified to contest the election, the appropriate step was to approach a competent court rather than independently remove his name.
The court subsequently ordered INEC to rectify the candidates’ list published on October 10, 2026, to include Adebutu’s name.
It also declared that INEC could not validly announce the result of the 2027 Ogun State governorship election without the participation of the plaintiffs, warning that any election conducted in breach of the order would be unconstitutional and of no effect.
