The suit was filed at the Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, the state capital over the outcome of the party’s primary election.
Some members of the Oyo State chapter of the Accord Party have sued Adebayo Adelabu, the party’s governorship candidate, along with the Senatorial and House of Representatives candidates in the state.
The suit was filed at the Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, the state capital over the outcome of the party’s primary election.
The plaintiffs, who include Okikiolu Adebolu, Hameed Saheed, Babatunde Layode and Lawal Akinyemi, also joined the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Accord Party as the first and second defendants in the suit marked FHC/IB/163/22.
The plaintiffs through their counsel, Kazeem Adedeji, are demanding that the court issue an order setting aside the publication of the names of all the defendants in the suit as the party’s governorship, Senatorial and House of Representatives candidates in the state.
The plaintiffs among other things asked the court to determine “Whether the Electoral Act, 2022 (As Amended), is a subsisting law regulating the nomination and or selection of candidates by political parties for elections into various elective offices recognized under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As Amended).
“Whether a political party can abridge the express provisions of the Electoral Act, or act in breach of the mandatory provisions of sections 77 and 84 of the Electoral Act, 2022 respectively.
“Whether having regard to the clear and mandatory provision of section 77 of the Electoral Act, 2022, a person who is not a registered member of the Accord Party at least 30 days before the conduct of its primaries is eligible to be nominated as its candidate for election.
“Whether Accord Party can act in breach of the mandatory provisions of section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution and section 77 of the Electoral Act in nominating non-members as its candidates for election into the office of Governor and other elective offices, in utter disregard of the requirements of the constitution and the extant electoral law.”
The aggrieved party members are also asking the court among other things for a declaration that by “virtue of the Electoral Act, 2022, the 1st Defendant cannot accept nor publish the names of 3 to 28 Defendants submitted by the 2nd defendants as its candidate when such names were submitted in contravention of the provisions of sections 77, 84 of the Electoral Act and sections 65(2)(b), 106(d), 177(c) of the 1999 constitution as amended as a subsisting law regulating the nomination and/or selection of candidates by political parties in Nigeria for election into the offices of Governor of a State, Senate, House of Representatives, House of Assembly”.
The plaintiffs asked the court for an “order setting aside the publication of the names of the 3 -28h Defendants as candidates of the 2nd defendants for elections in the 2023 general elections, the nominations having been made in breach of Section 77 of the Electoral Act, 202”.
They are also seeking an order “restraining the 1st Defendant (to wit, INEC) from recognizing or accepting 28 Defendants as candidates of the 2nd confirming the nomination of the 3rd Defendant in the 2023 general elections, which nomination was made in clear breach of Section 77 of the Electoral Act, 2022”.
The court fixed November 29, 2022, for the hearing of the matter, when all parties are expected to adopt their respective written addresses in the suit.
Meanwhile, Adelabu and the candidates named in the suit joined the Accord Party after they lost in the All Progressives Congress (APC) primaries in the state.