Nasarawa Court Orders INEC to Grant Abure-led Labour Party Access to Upload Candidates’ Names

The Julius Abure-led faction of the Labour Party has hailed a Nasarawa State High Court ruling ordering the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to grant it access codes to upload the names of its candidates for the upcoming Federal Capital Territory elections. National Publicity Secretary Obiora Ifoh described the decision as a welcome development that would “right the many wrongs” suffered by what he called the party’s authentic leadership. He expressed hope that INEC, as a law-abiding institution, would promptly publish the names of the nominees for both the bye-election and the FCT council polls.

Ifoh criticised INEC for denying Labour Party candidates equal opportunity to campaign, accusing the commission of a pattern of systemic exclusion. He recalled that during the Ondo governorship election, the party’s candidate was granted access to upload details barely 24 hours before the polls, calling the practice unacceptable. He urged candidates to remain undeterred, describing Labour Party as a household name destined for electoral victory.

The court also affirmed Julius Abure and Alhaji Umar Farouk Ibrahim as the authentic leaders of the party. In his ruling on suit number NSD/LF.84/2024, delivered on July 23, 2025, Justice Mustapha A. Ramat directed INEC to provide the faction with access to upload the particulars of their nominees for the bye-elections and FCT council elections. INEC has so far declined to publish the names submitted by the Abure-led faction ahead of the bye-election scheduled for Saturday and the FCT polls planned for early 2026.