The Supreme Court, on Friday, dismissed as lacking in merit the appeal filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) challenging the leadership of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
The apex court also upheld earlier judgments that compelled the electoral body to recognise and include SDP candidates in the by-elections conducted across 12 states of the federation.
Naijaonpoint reports that INEC had approached the Supreme Court to set aside the October 17, 2025, judgement of the Court of Appeal, Abuja, which affirmed an order of the Federal High Court directing it to include SDP candidates on the ballot.
The commission faulted the appellate court for upholding the decision of the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court in suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1525/2025, instituted by the SDP.
The party had challenged INEC’s refusal to recognise its candidates for the by-elections, despite the fact that the primaries that produced them were monitored by the electoral body.
INEC argued that the letters and notices submitted on behalf of the SDP were invalid because they were signed by the party’s Acting National Chairman, Dr Sadiq Umar Abubakar, and the National Secretary, Dr Olu Agunloye.
According to the commission, both officials had earlier been suspended by the party, rendering all correspondence they signed, including candidate nominations for the by-elections, invalid.
It was INEC’s position that internal party suspensions vitiated the legitimacy of the documents submitted to it.
Following SDP’s legal action, the Federal High Court ordered INEC to recognise and include all the party’s candidates in the by-elections.
Although INEC complied with the order, it proceeded to challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal.
In a unanimous judgement, a three-man panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Adebukola Banjoko, dismissed INEC’s appeal and affirmed the high court’s ruling.
Dissatisfied with the outcome, INEC further appealed to the Supreme Court. However, a five-member panel of the apex court dismissed the appeal, declaring that the matter had become an academic exercise, as the elections had already been conducted and all the winners sworn in.
Delivering the lead judgement, prepared by Justice Mohammed Idris, the Supreme Court said it found no basis to interfere with the concurrent findings of the two lower courts.
“The substratum of this appeal has been dissipated,” the court held, adding, “Courts do not engage in interventions on academic questions.”
The panel noted that there was nothing left upon which the court could exercise its adjudicatory powers.
The apex court stressed the absence of any live issue for determination and declined to entertain questions on the interpretation of the Electoral Act, noting that such issues could not be resolved in a vacuum.
Naijaonpoint reports that aside from dismissing the appeal, the Supreme Court awarded a ₦2 million cost against INEC’s lawyer.