INEC Clarifies Compliance with Court Order on Action Alliance Leadership Dispute

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has debunked reports claiming it disobeyed a Federal High Court judgment in Osogbo, Osun State, concerning the leadership tussle within the Action Alliance (AA).

In a statement signed by Sam Olumekun, National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, the Commission described the reports as misleading, explaining that they failed to reflect INEC’s prompt compliance with the court’s directive and wrongly suggested that a fresh arrest order had been issued against the former INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

According to the statement, the court order in question was issued on 29th September 2025, while INEC duly filed its compliance documents on 6th October 2025, still within the court’s stipulated timeframe. The Commission also tendered its website dashboard showing the updated recognition of the Action Alliance executives elected at the party’s convention held on 7th October 2023 in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

However, Olumekun noted that the judgment creditors later raised a complaint alleging partial compliance because the name of the party’s purported National Chairman, Rufai Omoaje, was not included in the list. INEC clarified that Omoaje’s exclusion was due to a subsisting judgment of the Court of Appeal, which had removed him as the party’s National Chairman — a decision that Omoaje himself has since appealed to the Supreme Court.

“The judgment of the Court of Appeal supersedes that of the Federal High Court. Therefore, the Commission cannot list Mr. Omoaje as National Chairman while the appellate judgment remains in effect,” the statement read.

INEC urged media organisations to verify facts before publication to prevent the spread of misinformation and confusion among the public.