Court Orders INEC To Recognize Labour Party Leadership, Upload Candidates Names For Bye-Elections
ABUJA – A High Court in Nasarawa State has directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to accord exclusive recognition to Barrister Julius Abure and Alhaji Umar Farouk Ibrahim as the authentic leadership of the Labour Party.
The court also ordered INEC to grant access code to the Labour Party’s National Working Committee to upload the names and particulars of their nominated candidates for the upcoming bye-elections and FCT Area Council elections.
The court’s decision was delivered on July 23, 2025, by Hon. Justice Mustapha A. Ramat came after the Labour Party approached the court seeking reliefs to enable them participate in the elections August 16, 2025 bye-election across the country and the FCT council poll.
LP in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by the party’s Publicity Secretary l, Abayomi Arabambi accused INEC of refusing to publish names of the nominated candidates by the party.
However, the court order sighted by The Encounter News mandated INEC to accord Julius Abure led National Executive Committee (NEC) as the recognized leadership of the party responsible to nominate candidates for elections.
The court said after hearing the submissions of Idris Yakubu counsel to Labour Party and none appearance of INEC after duly served with the Motion on Notice (M1/2025) dated 17th July, 2025, adjourned the case to September 22, 2025 for hearing of the main case.
Labour Party, however, applauded the intervention of the court describing it as a welcome development and an order that will right the many wrongs meted to the authentic leadership of the party.
The LP Publicity Secretary Secretary, Abayomi Arabambi said, “We received this intervention with a heart full of gratitude. We are, however, hoping that INEC, as a law-abiding institution, will do the needful by formally publishing the names of our nominees for the bye election and the FCT council elections without further delay.
“We are, however, not happy that our candidates have not been giving equal opportunity and time to campaign like other political parties. As it stands now, our candidates, due to reasons not of theirs, were prevented from campaigning. This is clearly a systemic route orchestrated by INEC to perpetually prevent Labour Party and their candidates from favourably participating in elections. Recall that in Ondo state, INEC granted Labour Party’s governorship candidate access code barely 24 hours to the election. This has become a norm, and we will not take such treatment any longer.
“Finally, we urge our candidates not to be undaunted or dismayed by these glaring limitations. Labour Party is a household name. We expect nothing but victory in all these contested offices. We also call on members of the party in the affected states to once more show their indomitable and ‘never die spirit’ to return our candidates.”
