The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court has fixed July 15, 2026 for the substantive hearing of a suit filed by Accord Party chieftain, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, seeking an order compelling the party to recognise him as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election and forward his name to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The adjournment followed the late entrance of INEC into the dispute, after both the party and the electoral body served fresh court processes on Hashim’s legal team shortly before Tuesday’s hearing began.
Counsel to the plaintiff, Henry Akunebu, SAN, told the court that the documents had only just been received and requested time to study and respond before the substantive hearing could proceed. Justice Mohammed Umar granted the request and adjourned the matter to Wednesday.
The proceedings drew hundreds of Accord Party members and supporters to the court complex, who surrounded Hashim on arrival and remained at the venue throughout the hearing.
Hashim, who named Accord Party and INEC as first and second defendants in an Originating Summons, is asking the court to determine whether the party’s failure to upload his name to INEC’s nomination portal despite his emergence as sole winner of the May 30 primary violates the Electoral Act 2026, the Constitution, and INEC’s guidelines for political parties.
He is seeking a declaration that the party’s refusal to forward his name breached Section 86 of the Electoral Act 2026 and Clauses 28(1) and (2) of the electoral guidelines on candidate nomination,
