The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared that it will not recognise or honour any list of candidates submitted by the Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party for the 2026 Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council Election.
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INEC made this position clear in a press statement issued on Tuesday, January 7, 2026, following a protest by supporters of the Labour Party at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja over the alleged exclusion of the party’s candidates from the forthcoming FCT Area Council Election scheduled for Saturday, February 21, 2026.
According to INEC, the crisis stems from prolonged internal leadership disputes within the Labour Party, which were decisively settled by the Supreme Court in Appeal No. SC/CV/56/2025 (Usman v. Labour Party) delivered on April 4, 2025. The apex court ruled that the tenure of the National Executive Committee led by Barrister Julius Abure had expired, effectively stripping him of any authority to act as National Chairman of the party.
Despite the Supreme Court’s judgment, INEC noted that the Abure-led faction went ahead to conduct primaries for the August 16, 2025 bye-elections nationwide, including the FCT Area Council Election, actions the Commission described as invalid.
INEC further recalled that the Abure-led faction had challenged its exclusion from the bye-election at the Federal High Court, Abuja, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/1523/2025. However, the court dismissed the suit on August 15, 2025, affirming the Supreme Court’s position and upholding INEC’s decision to exclude the faction from the election process.
The Commission revealed that the Labour Party subsequently filed multiple suits across different courts seeking orders to compel INEC to issue access codes for uploading its candidates for the FCT Area Council Election. These include cases before the Nasarawa State High Court, the Federal High Court Abuja, and two divisions of the FCT High Court.
INEC explained that although an interim ex parte order was granted by the FCT High Court, Life Camp Division, on December 16, 2025, directing the Commission to upload Labour Party candidates, the order expressly lapsed after seven days and was not extended. The order consequently expired on December 23, 2025, leaving no subsisting court order for INEC to act upon.
“As it stands, there is presently no valid court order compelling the Commission to issue access codes or upload candidates for the Labour Party in the FCT Area Council Election,” INEC stated.
The Commission emphasized that the matter remains sub judice and assured that it would continue to respect the judicial process while awaiting the final determination of the pending cases.
INEC reaffirmed its commitment to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Electoral Act 2022, and its regulations and guidelines, stressing that political parties must comply with democratic principles and the rule of law in managing their internal affairs.
As of the time of filing this report INEC still retains In it’s website.
The statement was signed by Mrs. Victoria Eta-Messi, Director of Voter Education and Publicity, on January 7, 2026.
