The Federal High Court in Abuja has reserved judgment in a suit filed by Accord Party chieftain, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, seeking to be recognised as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Justice Mohammed Umar fixed a date for judgment, which will be communicated to the parties after lawyers concluded their final written submissions.
Through his counsel, Henry Akunebu, Olawepo-Hashim asked the court to compel the Accord Party to upload his name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) nomination portal and direct the electoral body to accept and recognise his candidacy.
The plaintiff challenged the authenticity of documents presented by the Accord Party and INEC, particularly a letter said to have cancelled the party’s presidential primary. According to his lawyer, the document lacked the party’s official stamp and was allegedly received by an unnamed national commissioner rather than being properly processed.
Akunebu urged the court to reject the disputed documents, arguing that they were unreliable. He also questioned the party’s computer-generated membership register, saying it did not meet the legal requirements for admissibility and insisted that the presidential primary was never cancelled.
In response, counsel for the Accord Party, T.W. Olusesi, asked the court to dismiss the suit. He maintained that the presidential primary was lawfully cancelled because no aspirant purchased nomination forms or formally presented themselves to participate in the exercise.
Olusesi further argued that INEC did not monitor the primary because the commission had already been notified of its cancellation.
Counsel representing INEC, D.J. Gusen, supported the party’s position, telling the court that the commission received notification of the cancellation through one of its national commissioners and therefore did not deploy officials to monitor the exercise. He also urged the court to dismiss the case.
In his originating summons, Olawepo-Hashim asked the court to determine whether the party’s refusal to submit his name to INEC, despite his claim of emerging as the sole winner of the May 30 presidential primary, violated the Electoral Act 2026, the Constitution and INEC’s Guidelines for Political Parties.
He sought declarations that the party acted contrary to the Electoral Act and INEC guidelines by failing to forward his name as its candidate. Alternatively, he requested an order directing the party to conduct a fresh presidential primary in which he would be allowed to participate.
In an affidavit supporting the suit, Olawepo-Hashim stated that he is a registered and financially active member of the Accord Party. He claimed to have contributed ₦7 million toward the party’s electronic membership registration system and paid ₦50 million as the nomination fee for the presidential primary.
He further alleged that he emerged as the sole aspirant and winner of the primary, which he claimed was monitored by INEC officials, but accused the party of failing to forward his name to the electoral commission.
The court is expected to deliver its judgment on a date to be announced.
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