Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on Tuesday, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognize and publish names of candidates forwarded to it by the National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator David Mark, in respect of the February 21, Area Councils election in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
Justice Umar issued the order while delivering judgment in a suit filed by 17 candidates of the ADC, challenging the refusal of INEC to give them electronic access to enable them contest for elective positions in the forthcoming Area Councils election.
Delivering judgment in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/1907/25, Justice Umar held that the evidence provided by the plaintiffs was credible enough for him to attach a “more probate value”, adding that the plaintiffs also proved their case beyond a reasonable doubt to earn the reliefs sought in their originating summons.
He subsequently issued an order directing INEC to recognize and publish the names of the plaintiffs as candidates of the ADC for the various positions the plaintiffs contested for in the substitution primary election of the ADC preparatory to the 2026 FCT Area Council elections.
Justice Umar further directed INEC to give the ADC electronic access to upload the names of the plaintiffs as her candidates for the various positions the plaintiffs contested for in the substitution primary election of the ADC preparatory to the 2026 FCT Area Council elections by virtue of Sections 29(1), 31, 33 and 84(1)(5)(6) of the 2022 Electoral Act and the Election Guidelines of INEC.
The names ordered to be uploaded in INEC’s portal as candidates in the February 21 Area Council elections include: Jafaru Shaibu, Ayenajeyi Yakubu, Dauda Awode, Ezra Zaki, Sunday Abraham, Ayuba Adam, Jamilu Kabiru, Nuhu Madaki, Ibrahim Ali you and Ogwuche Linus.
Others are; Chibuike Anyika, Okechukwu Ironkwe, Godwin Adoga, Agada John, Onuoha Goodness, Mahrazu Bichi and Tobias Obechina.
They had dragged the electoral umpire to court for denying the ADC access to upload their names as ADC candidates in the forthcoming elections.
A 27-paragraph affidavit deposed to by one of the plaintiffs, Onuoha Goodness, claimed that the 1st to 16th plaintiffs participated in the primary election of the ADC after the withdrawal of candidates who participated in the main primary election of the ADC, whose names were uploaded on the portal of the ADC before the close of submission on August 11, 2025.
She added that the 17th plaintiff was nominated as a vice chairmanship candidate of the ADC for the 2026 Abuja Municipal Area Council and vice chairmanship election.
She explained that after their emergence, ADC “made efforts to upload to our INEC Forms EC9 and EC13 categories to the portal but could not get access to do so”.
Goodness explained that correspondence between ADC ICT staff and INEC ICT staff revealed that “the substitution notification letter from ADC to INEC was the issue as the access code given to ADC through her former National Chairman could not be used by the current National Chairman of the ADC since INEC did not recognize the signatures of the current National Chairman and National Secretary of the ADC, that is Senator David Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola.”
The plaintiffs claimed that they later wrote a letter to INEC to give ADC access to upload their names as candidates in the February 21 election but that INEC refused to receive the letter from their lawyer, Kalu Agu.
“That INEC is hell-bent on denying ADC access to upload our names on the INEC portal”, they submitted.
Among issues raised for determination are that whether by the provisions of the Electoral Act and Election Guidelines of INEC, it is mandatory on INEC to give electronic access to ADC to upload the names of the plaintiffs on its portal as candidates for the various positions the plaintiffs contested for in the substitution primary election of the ADC preparatory to the 2026 Federal Capital Territory Area Council Elections.
They urged that if the question was determined in their favour, the court should make an order directing INEC to give the ADC electronic access to upload their names and also publish the said names as candidates for the February 21 elections.
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