Osun Election: SDP Appeals Judgment Recognising Governorship Candidate

The leadership of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) has taken fresh legal steps to stop the implementation of a Federal High Court judgment that recognised Olaitan Salawu-Adeniyi as its governorship candidate for the 2026 Osun State election.

The party has asked the Court of Appeal in Abuja to suspend the execution of the judgment until its appeal against the decision is heard and determined. It also wants the appellate court to prevent the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from taking any action based on the ruling while the appeal remains pending.

The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Wednesday by the SDP National Publicity Secretary, Araba Rufus Aiyenigba. According to the party, the appeal, marked CA/ABJ/CV/1011/2026, arose from the June 24, 2026 judgment delivered by Justice M.G. Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/402/2026.

The SDP argued that the High Court directed INEC to enforce an earlier Court of Appeal judgment delivered on March 27, 2026, which recognised Shehu Gabam as the party’s National Chairman. The party maintained that the Supreme Court had already nullified that Court of Appeal decision on May 22, 2026, after which INEC reinstated Professor Sadiq Umar Abubakar Gombe as the recognised National Chairman.

According to the party, the High Court ruling contradicts the Supreme Court’s decision and cannot stand because a lower court has no authority to revive a judgment that has already been set aside by the apex court.

The SDP is therefore asking the Court of Appeal to suspend the enforcement of the Federal High Court judgment and stop INEC from acting on it until the appeal is concluded.

The legal dispute also centres on the party’s governorship primary in Osun State, involving Olaitan Salawu, former National Chairman Shehu Gabam and former National Youth Leader Ogbonna Okechukwu. The SDP insisted that Gabam and Okechukwu are no longer members of the party following their expulsion.

Court documents listed the SDP as the appellant, while Olaitan Salawu-Adeniyi, INEC, expelled National Chairman Shehu Musa Gabam and expelled former National Youth Leader Uchechukwu Chukwuma are named as respondents. The party also noted that the two former officials are currently facing criminal prosecution before the Wuse Magistrate Court.

The application before the Court of Appeal was filed under the provisions of the Court of Appeal Act, the Court of Appeal Rules 2021 and the court’s inherent powers.

The SDP argued that its appeal raises important legal questions that require determination before the Federal High Court judgment is implemented. It warned that allowing INEC to act on the ruling before the appeal is decided could permanently alter the situation and make the appeal meaningless if it eventually succeeds.

The party further maintained that preserving the current position would better serve the interest of justice and prevent irreversible actions while the appellate court considers the issues before it.

The case forms part of the continuing legal dispute over the leadership of the SDP and the nomination of its governorship candidate for the 2026 Osun State election.

As of the time of filing this report, the Court of Appeal had not fixed a date to hear the application or rule on the reliefs sought by the party.