Court Orders Accord Party, INEC to Recognise Olawepo-Hashim as 2027 Presidential Candidate
A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered Accord Party to recognise Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim as its presidential candidate and submit his name to INEC, after finding that the party failed to justify its refusal to recognise the outcome of its May 30 primary.
A Disputed Primary Reaches the Federal High Court
A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Accord Party to recognise Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim as its presidential candidate for the 2027 election and submit his name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Justice Mohammed Umar gave the order on October 5, 2026, following a legal dispute over the party’s presidential primary conducted on May 30. The court found that there was evidence supporting Olawepo-Hashim’s emergence as the sole aspirant and winner of the exercise. It consequently directed the party to submit his name to INEC in accordance with Section 86 of the Electoral Act 2026.
Why the Primary Became a Legal Dispute
Olawepo-Hashim had approached the court after Accord failed to forward his name to INEC. He maintained that he had participated in and won the May 30 primary as the sole aspirant.
Accord, however, disputed that position and maintained that no valid presidential primary had produced him as the party’s candidate. A major issue before the court was a purported communication notifying INEC that the primary had been cancelled.
Olawepo-Hashim’s counsel, Henry Akunebu, SAN, challenged the document’s authenticity and evidential value, including the circumstances under which it was received by INEC. The party and INEC maintained their opposing positions during the proceedings.
Justice Umar ultimately rejected the position relied upon by the defendants concerning the cancellation and found contradictions in the party’s case. The court also took account of evidence that Olawepo-Hashim had paid ₦50 million for the presidential nomination process.
What the Judgment Means
The decision places the immediate dispute over Accord’s 2027 presidential ticket on a judicial footing: the party is now under an order to recognise Olawepo-Hashim and forward his name to INEC.
The case also highlights an important issue in Nigeria’s electoral law , the extent to which political parties can alter, disregard or decline to submit the outcome of a nomination process after a primary has been conducted.
For the wider 2027 electoral process, the judgment is another reminder that disputes over party primaries are not merely internal political disagreements. Once questions about nomination, party procedures and compliance with the Electoral Act reach the courts, the resulting orders can directly affect who appears on the ballot.
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