Victor Ezeja
Hours to the Ondo State governorship election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) replaced the Labour Party candidate, Olusola Ebiseni with Dr. Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus.
The electoral body made this known in an update on the list of candidates for the Ondo State 2024 governorship election published on its X handle on Friday.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelINEC said the replacement was in obedience to a judgment of the Court of Appeal which sanctioned that Ayodele Festus should be restored as the authentic candidate of Labour Party in the Saturday, 16 November governorship election.
The appellate court in a ruling on Thursday, 14 November, set aside the 27th September 2024 judgment of the Federal High Court (FHC) Abuja division.
The FHC had while delivering judgment in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1105/2024, ordered the INEC to accept Olusola Ebiseni as the candidate of the Labour Party for the 2024 Ondo State Governorship election.
READ ALSO: Ondo Election: Labour Party Blasts Mischief Makers, Insists Ebiseni Still In Race
However, the Labour Party filed an appeal with reference number CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024 at the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division challenging the FHC ruling.
INEC said it was on Thursday, 14th November 2024, served with a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment of the Court of Appeal which set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court (FHC), Abuja Division.
“In obedience to the court order, the Commission has restored Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus, whose name was first published as the Labour Party candidate for the 2024 Ondo State Governorship election and uploaded the same to our website for public information,” INEC further clarified.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
