SDP asks Appeal Court to restrain INEC over leadership ruling

The Social Democratic Party (SDP) has asked the Court of Appeal in Abuja to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from enforcing a Federal High Court judgment on its leadership pending the determination of an appeal challenging the decision.

In a motion on notice filed before the appellate court, the party is seeking a stay of execution of the June 24 judgment delivered by the Federal High Court, Abuja, arguing that its enforcement could undermine the appeal and alter the subject matter of the dispute before it is heard.

The SDP is also asking the Court of Appeal to restrain INEC, its officials, agents and privies from taking any steps to implement the judgment until the appeal is determined.

Court documents obtained by BusinessDay show that the appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/1011/2026, arose from the judgment delivered by Justice Mohammed Umar in suit FHC/ABJ/CS/402/2026.

The respondents in the appeal are Salawu-Adeniyi Mustapha Olaitan, INEC, Shehu Musa Gabam and Uchechukwu Chukwuma.

The application was filed pursuant to Section 17 of the Court of Appeal Act, Order 4 Rule 6(2) of the Court of Appeal Rules, 2021, and the court’s inherent jurisdiction.

At the centre of the dispute is the SDP’s contention that the Federal High Court, in its June 24 judgment, directed INEC to give effect to a March 27 Court of Appeal judgment in Fayemi Tosin Babatunde v. INEC, which recognised Gabam as the party’s national chairman.

The party argued, however, that the Court of Appeal decision had already been set aside by the Supreme Court on May 22 and, therefore, no longer had legal effect.

According to the SDP, the Federal High Court’s judgment effectively sought to enforce a decision that had been nullified by the apex court, making it inconsistent with the subsisting Supreme Court judgment.

The party further argued that unless the appellate court grants a stay of execution, INEC could proceed to implement the judgment, potentially changing the status of the disputed offices before the appeal is determined.

It maintained that such a development would render the appeal nugatory and cause irreparable prejudice if the Court of Appeal ultimately rules in its favour.

Among the reliefs sought are an order staying the execution of the Federal High Court judgment pending the determination of the appeal and an order restraining INEC from recognising or acting on the court’s directives while the appeal remains pending.

The dispute also extends to the recognition of Salawu-Adeniyi Mustapha Olaitan as the SDP’s governorship candidate for the Osun State governorship election, as well as the recognition of Gabam and Chukwuma as the party’s national chairman and acting national secretary, respectively.

The SDP urged the Court of Appeal to preserve the status quo pending the determination of the appeal, arguing that the balance of convenience favours maintaining the existing position.

The Court of Appeal has yet to fix a date for hearing the application.