The High Court sitting in Ibadan has adjourned until September 21, 2026, the hearing of a suit filed by Hon. Afeez Adio challenging the nomination of Hon. Akinola Alabi by the All Progressives Congress (APC) as its candidate for the Egbeda/Ona Ara Federal Constituency.
The 1st Defendant in the suit is the All Progressives Congress (APC), the 2nd Defendant is Hon. Akinola Alabi, while the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is the 3rd Defendant.
The case, presided over by Hon. Justice Uche N. Agomoh, was originally scheduled for hearing on September 16, 2026, following an earlier adjournment in July.
According to the legal team representing Hon. Adio, led by Ibrahim, the plaintiff had responded to the Counter-Affidavit filed by the second defendant and had also complied with other procedural requirements. The lawyer said all the plaintiff’s witnesses had signed the necessary documents, while the applications dated July 7 and July 10, 2026, had been duly served on all the defendants.
The legal team further informed the court that the second defendant subsequently filed another affidavit on August 10, which was served and deemed properly filed. The defendants had also sought extensions of time to file their respective affidavits.
However, counsel to the first defendant asked the court to adjourn the matter, explaining that his client was attending a national conference and needed to be personally available to file the necessary documents.
Counsel to the second defendant, Usian Afolabi, also requested an adjournment to September 16, stating that his client had complied with the court’s directives and filed the required Counter-Affidavit. He added that the defence had received the plaintiff’s responses to the Preliminary Objection and other bundles of affidavits.
The court, however, questioned part of the submission concerning the second affidavit, with Justice Agomoh telling counsel that he did not have the capacity to make such a determination on the matter.
Counsel representing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the 3rd Defendant, opposed the request for further adjournment, stressing that the case was an election matter and that time was of the essence.
The INEC lawyer told the court that the date being sought was personally inconvenient and urged the court not to grant the application for adjournment.
Following arguments from the lawyers, Justice Agomoh initially fixed September 16 as the next hearing date. However, as some of the lawyers continued to seek another date, the judge directed them to agree on a mutually convenient date.
After further deliberations, the court eventually adjourned the matter to September 21, 2026, when the case is expected to come up for further hearing.
The suit is centred on Hon. Adio’s challenge to the APC’s nomination of Akinola Alabi to contest the Egbeda/Ona Ara Federal Constituency seat, with the court expected to determine the issues raised by the plaintiff and the responses of the three defendants.
