The Federal High Court in Abuja has upheld the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) decision to exclude Labour Party (LP) candidates from the upcoming Area Council elections in the Federal Capital Territory, scheduled for February 21.
The ruling, delivered on Wednesday by Justice Peter Lifu, rejected the Labour Party’s request to compel INEC to accept and publish its list of candidates for the elections.
The court dismissed the suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2110/2025, on the grounds that it was statute-barred. Justice Lifu noted that the case was a pre-election matter under the provisions of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and was not filed within the legally required timeframe.
Although the suit was filed on October 7, 2025, the court observed that the alleged exclusion by INEC occurred on October 22, 2025.
“Having not been filed within the statutory period, this court no longer has the jurisdiction to entertain the matter,” Justice Lifu ruled, citing Section 285(14)(c) of the Constitution, which mandates that pre-election suits must be filed within 14 days of the occurrence of the cause of action.
The court also pointed out that a similar suit involving the same parties was pending before a High Court in Nasarawa State, creating the appearance of forum shopping, which further weakened the Labour Party’s case.
The Labour Party had contended that INEC unlawfully excluded its candidates when publishing its final list in September 2025, and that its party logo was absent from the list of participating political parties. The party also claimed that letters sent to the INEC Chairman on September 8 and October 2, 2025, went unanswered.
Justice Lifu, however, dismissed all reliefs sought by the Labour Party, ruling that no intervention from the court was warranted.
The decision comes against the backdrop of a prolonged leadership crisis within the Labour Party, which influenced INEC’s decision not to recognise the lists submitted by the party’s rival factions for the FCT polls.
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