The Peoples Democratic Party in Ekiti State says it has approached the Court of Appeal to overturn a Federal High Court judgment that annulled its governorship primary election, which produced Dr. Wole Oluyede as the party’s candidate.
The Director of Media and Communication for the Ekiti PDP Governorship Campaign Council, Chief Sanya Atofarati, insisted that Oluyede was duly nominated in a primary witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
He said this in a statement on Sunday evening.
“The judgment has since been appealed, and the status quo remains. Ongoing litigations and political manoeuvres will not derail our party’s resolve to reclaim power from the All Progressives Congress in the June 20 governorship election in Ekiti,”Atofarati said.
The PDP accused the ruling All Progressives Congress of trying to exploit the court judgment to destabilise the PDP, saying the challenges had only strengthened the party’s determination and “further exposed the failures of the current APC-led administration in the state.” He cited poor governance, adding:
“Across Ekiti State today, pensioners groan under the weight of unpaid arrears; critical roads have become impassable; the education sector has deteriorated alarmingly; businesses suffer under multiple taxation; and public infrastructure lies in ruin. Rarely has a sitting governor been so unpopular, even within his own party. While the APC suppresses internal dissent by avoiding credible primaries, it remains obsessively fixated on the PDP.”
The PDP affirmed its commitment to Oluyede as its candidate.
“The PDP has not and will not denounce Dr Wole Oluyede as its duly elected and nominated governorship candidate, except as may be determined by the final decision of the superior courts.”
Atofarati also alleged that INEC’s omission of Oluyede’s name from the provisional list of candidates was a deliberate attempt to block the party from the ballot.
“This attempt is laughable, unlawful, and counterproductive. The PDP has already approached the courts to compel INEC to act in accordance with the law. No institution can disenfranchise the PDP in Nigeria without grave consequences for democracy,” he warned.
He urged party members and supporters to intensify grassroots mobilisation and participate in the ongoing voter registration exercise ahead of the election, stating:
“As we have consistently maintained, the coming election is APC versus the people of Ekiti State, and the power of the people will always be greater than the people in power.”
The Federal High Court had nullified the PDP primaries in a suit filed by aspirant Funso Ayeni, ruling that the November 8, 2025 primary did not comply with the law or the party’s constitution, and ordered a fresh exercise.
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