The Federal High Court in Abuja has affirmed Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim as the Accord Party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election. Justice Mohammed Umar ruled that Olawepo-Hashim emerged as the party’s sole candidate through a primary election conducted on 30 May 2026.
The court ordered the Accord Party to immediately recognise Olawepo-Hashim and forward his name to the Independent National Electoral Commission for uploading onto its portal. Justice Umar held that it was wrong for the party to have failed to recognise the plaintiff after collecting ₦50 million from him as nomination and expression of interest fees.
Olawepo-Hashim had sued Accord and INEC in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/1268/2026. His lawyer, Henry Akunaebu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, argued that the party had refused to forward his name despite his valid nomination.
This mirrors the recurring pattern of intra-party disputes over presidential nominations that have plagued Nigerian elections since 1999. In 2019, the Supreme Court removed the APC’s candidates in Zamfara State over improper primaries. In 2022, the PDP’s presidential primary produced litigation that dragged into the election year. The courts have become the final arbiters of party primaries because the parties themselves cannot manage internal democracy.
The Accord Party dispute is smaller in scale but follows the same logic. A candidate pays for nomination forms, wins a primary, and the party refuses to submit his name. The courts intervene because the political party has failed to function as an institution.
The human stakes are about electoral choice. If parties can arbitrarily refuse to submit validly nominated candidates, voters are denied options they might have chosen. The court’s ruling restores Olawepo-Hashim to the ballot. Whether he can build a competitive campaign is a separate question.
Winners and Losers
Winners: Olawepo-Hashim, who gains legal validation and a place on the ballot. INEC, which receives a court order that clarifies its obligation. The judiciary, which demonstrates its role as a check on party arbitrariness.
Losers: The Accord Party, which suffers reputational damage and a legal defeat. Other opposition parties, which face a slightly more crowded presidential field. The party’s internal factions that opposed Olawepo-Hashim, whose strategy has been invalidated by the court.
Bottom Line: A court order restored a candidate. It did not build a campaign. Olawepo-Hashim now has the ballot line. The harder task is convincing Nigerians he deserves their votes.