The Accord party has urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to dismiss a lawsuit seeking the disqualification of its candidates for the 2027 general elections. The party described the legal action as incompetent, premature, and statute-barred, according to Punch.
The lawsuit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/2524/2026, was filed on October 21, 2026, by the party’s National Secretary, Adebukola Ajaja. She took the matter to court after accusing National Chairman Maxwell Mgbudem and National Organising Secretary Ibe Kenechukwu ThankGod of usurping her powers by submitting the candidate list to the Independent National Electoral Commission without her involvement.
Ajaja insisted that the Electoral Act, 2026, the party's constitution, and INEC guidelines mandate that both the national chairman and national secretary must jointly endorse and deliver candidate nomination forms. She specifically asked the court to void EC9 forms and three forwarding letters sent to INEC between June and August 2026.
Responding through a preliminary objection filed by Musibau Adetunbi (SAN), Accord insisted that the court lacks jurisdiction over the matter. The party maintained that candidate nomination is strictly an internal issue and pointed out that the lawsuit was instituted well outside the 14 days allowed by law.
The party also argued that Ajaja lacked locus standi because she did not run as an aspirant in the primary election held on May 29, 2026. Furthermore, Accord argued that the suit failed to join the nominated candidates, who ought to be given a fair chance to defend their tickets.
Defending the nomination filings, Accord explained that its leadership formally permitted the national organising secretary to sign alongside the chairman. In a counter-affidavit, Mgbudem claimed that Ajaja had abandoned her duty and missed three straight National Working Committee meetings, while also questioning her management of party funds.
