FCT ballot: Why we blocked Labour Celebration from importing candidates — INEC
The Impartial Nationwide Electoral Fee has defined why it refused to difficulty entry codes to the Labour Celebration to add names of candidates for the February 21, 2026, Federal Capital Territory Space Council election.
In an announcement on Wednesday by its Director of Voter Schooling and Publicity, Victoria Ewa-Messi, the Fee stated the occasion remained embroiled in a protracted management disaster, which had additionally resulted in a number of courtroom circumstances.
Supporters of the Labour Celebration had staged a protest at INEC headquarters in Abuja, accusing the Fee of excluding the occasion’s candidates from the election and demanding entry codes required to add their names.
INEC stated the protest was pointless, insisting the matter was already earlier than totally different courts and due to this fact sub judice.
The Fee recalled that the management disaster within the occasion culminated in a Supreme Court docket judgment delivered on April 4, 2025, which held that the tenure of the Nationwide Government Committee led by Julius Abure had expired.
He stated, “Regardless of this clear pronouncement, the Abure-led faction purportedly performed primaries for the August 16, 2025, bye-election nationwide and the FCT Space Council Election.”
INEC additional famous that subsequent circumstances filed by the occasion searching for to compel the Fee to difficulty entry codes had both been dismissed or had been nonetheless pending in courtroom.
It defined that though a Excessive Court docket in Abuja granted an interim ex parte order on December 16, 2025 directing it to add Labour Celebration candidates, the order expired after seven days and was not prolonged.
“The interim Order consequently lapsed on twenty third December, 2025 and was not prolonged. Accordingly, there’s presently no subsisting Court docket Order for INEC to behave upon,” INEC said.
INEC maintained that it might proceed to respect the judicial course of and await remaining courtroom selections earlier than taking any motion on the matter.