- Federal High Court ordered INEC to recognise Oluyede as PDP candidate.
- Court directed commission to include his name on Ekiti ballot.
- PDP describes judgment as victory for justice and democracy.
The Federal High Court of Nigeria sitting in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognise Oluwole Oluyede as the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the forthcoming governorship election in Ekiti State.
EDITOR’S PICKS
- Governor Ahmadu Fintiri Defects To APC As Atiku’s Son Refuses To Dump PDP
- Should Governors Have To Join Ruling Party for ‘Greater Federal Support’?
- FEDSA National Pays Courtesy Visit to Lekki LCDA Chairman, Applauds Free JAMB Initiative
EKO HOT BLOG reports that Justice Justice Umar delivered the judgment in a suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/40/2026, granting all the reliefs sought by Oluyede and the PDP against the electoral body.
In the ruling, the court faulted INEC for excluding Oluyede’s name from the list of candidates earlier released for the Ekiti governorship poll.
Justice Umar subsequently directed the commission to immediately recognise Oluyede as the validly nominated candidate of the PDP for the election. The court also ordered INEC to include the candidate’s name alongside the party’s logo on the ballot paper for the governorship poll.
Beyond recognising the candidate, the court issued a perpetual injunction restraining the electoral body from rejecting or excluding Oluyede from any process or activity connected with the Ekiti governorship election. The order effectively compels INEC to treat him as the duly nominated flagbearer of the PDP for the contest.
Before the legal dispute, Oluyede had received a certificate of return from the National Chairman of the PDP, Kabiru Turaki, confirming him as the party’s candidate for the 2026 Ekiti governorship election. However, the party alleged that INEC, under the leadership of its chairman, Joash Amupitan, refused to include Oluyede’s name on the official list of candidates for the election.
The development prompted the PDP and its candidate to approach the Federal High Court to challenge the decision. Reacting to the judgment, the PDP described the ruling as a victory for justice and democratic principles. In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, the party urged INEC to operate strictly within the bounds of the law.
The opposition party warned that actions capable of undermining Nigeria’s multiparty democratic system should be avoided. It also called on party members and supporters in Ekiti State to intensify mobilisation and campaign efforts ahead of the governorship election. The PDP expressed confidence that with Oluyede as its candidate, the party will secure victory in the forthcoming poll.
FURTHER READING
- Fire Breaks Out At Jama’a Emir’s Palace In Kaduna
- ‘Security Is Local’ – Tinubu Makes Fresh Case for State Policing
- Nigeria’s GDP Grows by 4.07% in Q4 2025, NBS Reports
