The Federal High Court in Abuja has upheld the decision barring the Labour Party (LP) and its candidates from participating in the forthcoming Area Council elections in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The court ruled that the suit filed by the Labour Party and its nominated candidates could not be entertained because it was not instituted within the constitutionally prescribed timeframe for pre-election matters.
As a result, the court dismissed all the reliefs sought against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), including the demand that the electoral body accept the party’s submissions.
In its case, the LP argued that INEC unlawfully excluded its candidates from the final list published ahead of the elections.
The party told the court that it had formally written to INEC in September and October 2025 to protest the omission of its candidates and party logo from the list of political parties cleared to contest the polls, but received no response. It warned that failure to intervene would unfairly shut the party out of the election.
Delivering judgment on Wednesday in Abuja, Justice Peter Lifu ruled that the matter constituted a pre-election dispute under the 1999 Constitution.
He noted that although the suit was filed on October 7, 2025, the alleged cause of action, the exclusion of LP candidates by INEC, arose on October 22, 2025.
According to Justice Lifu, Section 285 of the Constitution requires such cases to be filed within 14 days, a condition the plaintiffs failed to meet.
The judge further observed that a similar suit involving the same parties was pending before a High Court in Nasarawa State, describing the situation as an attempt at forum shopping. He consequently dismissed the case as statute-barred and lacking jurisdiction.
The court’s decision reinforces INEC’s position, which was influenced by the unresolved leadership crisis within the Labour Party, leading the commission to reject multiple candidate lists submitted by rival factions ahead of the February 21 FCT Area Council elections.
