The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has replaced the Labour Party candidate, Olusola Ebiseni, with Dr Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus following a ruling by the Court of Appeal.
In a statement issued on its official X (formerly Twitter) account on Friday, INEC confirmed the change in compliance with the appellate court’s directive.
“In obedience to the court order, the Commission has restored Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus, whose name was first published as the Labour Party candidate for the 2024 Ondo State Governorship election and uploaded the same to our website for public information,” the statement read.
This decision comes after the Court of Appeal in Abuja overturned an earlier ruling by the Federal High Court that had directed INEC to recognise Olusola Ebiseni as the Labour Party’s candidate.
The Federal High Court, in a judgment delivered on 27 September 2024, had ruled in favour of Ebiseni, ordering INEC to list him as the Labour Party’s candidate for the upcoming election. However, the Labour Party challenged the decision at the appellate court.
Court of Appeal’s Verdict
In its ruling under reference number CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024, the Court of Appeal determined that the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to issue such a judgment.
As a result, the Court of Appeal ordered the immediate reinstatement of Festus as the Labour Party’s legitimate candidate.
INEC confirmed receiving the Certified True Copy of the judgment on 14 November 2024, which set aside the Federal High Court’s earlier decision.
“The Federal High Court, in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1105/2024, had on 27 September 2024 ordered INEC to accept Olusola Ebiseni as the candidate of the Labour Party for the 2024 Ondo State Governorship election.
“However, in the appeal with reference number CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024 filed by the Labour Party, the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division struck out the judgment of the Federal High Court for lack of jurisdiction,” the statement concluded.