The Peoples Democratic Party has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission of bias and announced plans to approach the court over the exclusion of its candidate from the list of contestants for the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election.
In a press statement issued on Tuesday signed by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, the party said INEC wrongly omitted the name of its candidate, Dr. Oluwole Oluyede, despite being fully aware that the PDP conducted valid and lawful governorship primaries.
According to the PDP, INEC monitored the party’s primaries and later issued reports confirming that the exercise complied with all relevant electoral laws.
The party added that INEC initially released nomination portal codes for the submission of candidate details, but later blocked the codes a few days to the deadline, forcing the PDP to submit the nomination documents manually at INEC’s office.
The party said INEC acknowledged receipt of the manual submission and had no legal basis to exclude its candidate, noting that there was no court order restraining the commission from recognising Dr. Oluyede as the PDP’s flagbearer.
“There is no contrary submission before INEC disputing the validity of Dr. Oluyede’s nomination,” the statement said, adding that INEC’s own monitoring report affirmed the credibility of the primaries and nomination process.
Describing the exclusion as a reflection of bias against the PDP, the party said INEC failed to act with caution, given the serious implications of leaving out a validly nominated candidate from an election.
The PDP disclosed that it has commenced legal steps to compel INEC to include its candidate on the list, while urging the commission to uphold its constitutional responsibility to remain independent, impartial and neutral in the conduct of elections.
“Being fully aware of the grave and far-reaching consequences of excluding a validly nominated candidate from an election, INEC ought to have acted with caution and responsibility by including the name of Dr. Oluwole Oluyede, the duly nominated candidate of the PDP, in the published list of candidates.
“This would have been the safest and most lawful course of action for the Commission, had it acted without bias.
There is no contrary submission before INEC disputing the validity of Dr. Oluyede’s nomination.
“There is also no court order restraining the Commission from recognising him as the PDP’s candidate. Indeed, INEC’s own monitoring report attests to the validity of the primaries and the nomination process.
“Having failed to act appropriately, our party has immediately taken steps to approach the courts to compel INEC to do what it ought to have done in the first place. While we undertake this long and tortuous legal route, we once again draw the attention of INEC to the expectations of Nigerians that the Commission must remain independent, impartial, and neutral in matters relating to political parties and the electoral process.”
