Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
A coalition of civil society organisations has issued a sharp ultimatum to Nigeria’s electoral commission, demanding it immediately comply with a Court of Appeal judgment on the leadership of the Action Alliance and its candidate for the 2027 presidential election, or face a nationwide mobilisation.
The Coalition of Civil Society Groups for Peace, Security, Good Governance, Equity and Justice made the demand in a statement made available to journalists in Kaduna and signed by its Convener, Comrade James Okoronkwo. The group said the Court of Appeal had affirmed Kenneth Udeze as the authentic National Chairman of the Action Alliance, arguing that the judgment remained valid and binding on the Independent National Electoral Commission and other relevant institutions.
According to the coalition, the appellate court’s decision should have paved the way for the recognition of Joseph Oluwadare Fadojoe as the party’s presidential candidate, following a primary election conducted by the party’s National Executive Committee under Udeze’s leadership. Instead, the group alleged, INEC has continued to recognise Adekunle Omo-Aje as the Action Alliance’s presidential candidate, a situation it described as shocking, vexatious, illegal, reprehensible and contemptuous of the Court of Appeal.
The coalition did not mince words in its assessment of the commission’s conduct. It stated that the continued recognition of Omo-Aje as the Presidential Candidate of Action Alliance by INEC is illegal, null and void, insisting that Fadojoe was the candidate produced by the party’s legitimate leadership. The group further argued that INEC, as a statutory institution, should not selectively comply with court decisions. It said INEC as an institution created by law cannot and must not be seen to be disobeying the law or choosing which court judgment to obey.
The coalition specifically called on INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, to take immediate steps to resolve the dispute. It demanded that the commission publish Fadojoe’s name as the Action Alliance’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election, withdraw its recognition of Omo-Aje and fully comply with the Court of Appeal judgment affirming Udeze as the party’s National Chairman. The group said it believed Amupitan, as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, would uphold the authority of the judiciary and resolve the matter.
The warning that followed was unambiguous. Failure by INEC to comply with this legitimate demand within a reasonable time will leave this Coalition with no other option than to mobilise all civil society groups across the country for a peaceful mass action and to explore all legal options to compel compliance and defend our democracy, the statement said. The coalition urged INEC to align its records with the appellate court’s judgment without further delay.
The dispute is the latest flashpoint in a broader pattern of legal and institutional friction that has come to define Nigeria’s preparations for the 2027 general election. The Court of Appeal in Abuja has been at the centre of a series of high-stakes rulings that have alternately strengthened and questioned INEC’s authority over the electoral calendar.
In July, a three-member panel of the appellate court set aside a Federal High Court judgment that had nullified key timelines in INEC’s revised timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 elections. The appellate court held that INEC acted within its statutory powers when it released the timetable and ruled that the document amounted to subsidiary legislation made pursuant to the Electoral Act 2026, carrying the same legal force as the principal legislation. The court also validated INEC’s guidelines for the conduct of the 2027 polls, overturning a lower court decision that had set aside parts of the commission’s electoral guidelines.
However, a separate panel of the same Court of Appeal delivered a conflicting judgment that voided crucial provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 governing political party membership registers and candidate nominations. The appellate court struck down Sections 77(5), (6) and (7), as well as Section 84(2) of the Act, declaring them inconsistent with the Constitution. The conflicting pronouncements from the same appellate court have created uncertainty and confusion among political parties preparing for the 2027 general election.
The Supreme Court has since waded into the legal tangle. On Wednesday, a panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro reserved judgment in an appeal filed by INEC challenging the Court of Appeal judgment that voided the Electoral Act provisions dealing with political party primaries and membership registers. The case, marked SC/CR/495/2026, will determine the final legal framework governing candidate nomination and party primary processes ahead of the 2027 polls.
The Action Alliance leadership crisis has been a long-running saga. The Court of Appeal sitting in Akure had earlier granted Udeze permission to withdraw as an interested party in a suit challenging the leadership of the party, with the court holding that continuing the matter served no practical purpose. In April 2026, the Federal High Court in Abuja struck out a suit filed by the Udeze-led leadership of the Action Alliance and the party’s governorship candidate for Ekiti State. The appellate court’s subsequent rulings in Udeze’s favour have been cited by the coalition as evidence that INEC’s continued recognition of the Omo-Aje faction amounts to a disregard for the judiciary.
The coalition’s ultimatum adds a new dimension of pressure on INEC, which is already navigating a complex legal landscape with less than a year to the 2027 general election. The commission has publicly maintained that the conflicting Court of Appeal judgments do not pose any threat to its preparations for the polls or its ability to conduct free, fair and credible elections. A senior INEC official told ThisDay that while the judgments are significant, they affect aspects of electoral administration rather than the commission’s core constitutional mandate.
Yet the coalition’s threatened mass action, if carried out, would represent a significant escalation in the standoff. Civil society mobilisation over electoral disputes has the potential to disrupt INEC’s preparations and erode public confidence in the commission at a critical juncture. The coalition said it was left with no other option than to mobilise all civil society groups across the country for a peaceful mass action and to explore all legal options to compel compliance and defend our democracy if INEC fails to act within a reasonable time.
The coming weeks will determine whether INEC bows to the pressure and reconfigures its records on the Action Alliance presidential candidate, or whether Nigeria’s 2027 election season will be further complicated by a confrontation between the electoral commission and an organised civil society coalition determined to enforce the authority of the courts.
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