Abuja, Nigeria
The supreme court has dismissed a suit filed by the candidate of of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2024 Ondo election Agboola Ajayi, against the nomination of of Olayide Adelami, deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
A five-member panel of the apex court ruled on Tuesday, rejecting Ajayi’s appeal against the court of appeal’s decision.
The suit marked SC/CV/106/2025—Agboola Ajayi & Anor v. Olayide Owolabi Adelami & Ors— was an appeal brought before the apex court by Ajayi.
In the judgment, the apex court rejected and dismissed the appeal, and also awarded ₦2 million in favour of each respondent against the appellants which Ajayi is expected to pay the four respondents.
According to the apex court, the appellants lacked the locus standi (legal standing) to pursue the case, rendering the appeal unsustainable.
Additionally, the court affirmed that the suit was statute-barred, upholding the decisions of the lower courts. It emphasized that the cause of action arose on May 20, 2024, when the nomination forms were submitted to INEC, whereas the appellants filed their suit at the Federal High Court on June 7, 2024—beyond the 14-day limit prescribed by law.
Ajayi had sought to nullify the election of Deputy Governor Dr. Olayide Owolabi Adelami over alleged discrepancies in his name change. He also challenged the legitimacy of Governor Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the case.
He focused on the claim that Adelami, who had previously used “Jackson” as his middle name in secondary school, changed it to “Owolabi” without proper documentation.
However, the Supreme Court found no legal grounds to disqualify the deputy governor on this basis, affirming that legally documented name changes do not amount to electoral fraud or provide grounds for disqualification.
After addressing the issues raised by the appellants, the court concluded that its findings were adequate to dismiss the appeal.
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the appeal was without merit and dismissed it.
