The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken legal action to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise its candidate for the Ekiti State governorship election.

INEC had reportedly excluded Dr. Oluwole Oluyede, the PDP’s candidate, from the official list of political party candidates for the election.

In a statement, National Publicity Secretary Ini Emembong accused the commission of bias and said the PDP had properly notified INEC of the primaries that produced Oluyede.

“The commission attended and monitored the exercise and subsequently issued reports confirming that the primaries complied with all extant laws and were democratically conducted,” the party said.

The PDP added that INEC initially provided the nomination portal codes for official submission of Oluyede’s forms but blocked access a few days before the submission deadline, forcing the party to submit the forms manually, a submission that INEC acknowledged receiving.

The party stressed that there is no court order restraining INEC from recognising Oluyede, noting that the commission’s own monitoring report validates the primaries and nomination process.

PDP argued that INEC should have included its candidate in the published list of candidates, warning that excluding a validly nominated candidate carries serious consequences.

Since INEC did not act accordingly, the party has approached the courts to compel the commission to recognise Oluyede.

“While we undertake this long and tortuous legal route, we once again draw the attention of INEC to the expectations of Nigerians that the commission must remain independent, impartial, and neutral in matters relating to political parties and the electoral process,” the PDP stated.