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From Bamigbola Gbolagunte
The Federal High Court sitting in Osogbo, Osun State, has given the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seven days to recognise Hon Adekunle Rufai Omoaje as the national chairman of the Action Alliance (AA).
The court further ordered INEC to update its portal to reflect Omoaje as the authentic national chairman of the Action Alliance.
Delivering its ruling on the case filed by Omoaje regarding the non-compliance by INEC with the prior court judgment of 11 November 2024—which mandated INEC to recognise all National Executive Committee (NEC) members elected at the party’s national convention in Abeokuta, Ogun State, in October 2023, where Omoaje emerged as chairman—the court criticised INEC for failing to respect its judgment.
Previously, the court had directed INEC to display Omoaje’s name on its portal, having been elected at the elective national convention supervised by INEC.
Despite this, INEC did not fully comply, listing other NEC members but excluding Omoaje’s name.
However, in her ruling on Tuesday, Justice Demi-Ajayi issued a seven-day ultimatum for INEC to comply fully by listing all NEC members, including Omoaje, on its portal.
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Justice Demi-Ajayi affirmed that Omoaje was duly elected national chairman and emphasised the need for his name to appear on the commission’s portal.
The court distinguished between partial and substantial compliance, expressing concern over INEC’s failure to adhere fully to its judgment, and declared that partial compliance amounts to no compliance.
The judge stated: “Filing of an appeal does not mean stay of execution. INEC ought to comply fully with the judgment of this Honourable court.”
The court held that INEC’s conduct demonstrated disobedience and lack of submission to the court, highlighting this as evidence of bias.
Accordingly, the court awarded costs of N100,000 against INEC.
