Despite leaving office as chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu has been ordered by the Federal High Court in Osogbo, Osun State, to be arrested for contempt of court.
The order was issued hours after Yakubu’s exit and directs the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, to arrest him in connection with a case filed by the Action Alliance (AA). The party had challenged INEC and Yakubu for failing to comply with a previous court judgment delivered by Justice Funmilola Demi-Ajayi in suit number FHC/OS/CS/194/2024.
In that judgment, the court had ordered INEC to upload the names of AA’s National Chairman, Adekunle Rufai Omoaje, other members of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), and all state chairmen on the INEC portal. While the names of the state chairmen and NEC members have been uploaded, Omoaje’s name remains absent, prompting the contempt ruling.
The court noted that the party’s elective convention on 7 October 2023, which produced Omoaje as national chairman, was authentic and properly supervised by INEC officials.
The court order, dated 7 October 2025 and signed by Mr. O.M. Kilani on behalf of the Court Registrar, mandates that the Inspector General of Police arrest and charge Yakubu and other judgment debtors for contempt within seven days. A cost of ₦100,000 was also awarded against the judgment creditors.