By Nkechi Eze
The leadership of the Action Alliance (AA) party has strongly condemned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for what it described as the illegal replacement of its state chairmen across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), allegedly in compliance with a controversial Federal High Court judgment delivered in Osogbo, Osun State.
In a statement signed by the party’s National Secretary, Vernimbe A. James, and made available to journalists, the party expressed its disapproval of INEC’s decision to act on the Osogbo court judgment, despite several subsisting judgments from the Court of Appeal affirming Chief Barr Kenneth Udeze as the authentic national chairman of the party.
The statement accused INEC of ignoring legal processes already in motion, including a motion for stay of execution and a motion to set aside the Osogbo judgment, both of which, according to the party, have been duly filed and served on the Commission.
“We vehemently disagree with INEC’s decision to proceed with implementing the Osogbo judgment by replacing our legitimate state chairmen, despite being fully aware of higher court decisions validating the leadership of Chief Barr Kenneth Udeze,” the statement read.
The party stressed that INEC’s recognition of individuals it described as “non-members” as state chairmen under the guise of complying with the Osogbo ruling amounted to an affront on the rule of law and a disregard for established judicial hierarchy. “The Commission cannot impose non-party members as state chairmen when there are binding Appeal Court judgments already resolving the leadership dispute in our favour,” it stated.
The AA further alleged that INEC had suppressed critical facts from the Federal High Court in Osogbo by failing to disclose the existing judgments of the Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, which it claimed settled the party’s internal leadership crisis in favour of Udeze’s leadership.
Describing INEC’s actions as “executive rascality,” the party revealed that the legitimate state chairmen and the FCT representative, through their legal counsel, Chief K.E. Ngwoke, had filed the necessary legal motions challenging the Osogbo judgment and warning INEC against implementing it pending the outcome of the court processes.
The party also disclosed that a formal letter dated June 23, 2025, had been addressed to the Chairman of INEC, advising the Commission to await the determination of the pending motions before taking any action based on the judgment.
“We demand that the Commission immediately reviews its decision and refrains from further implementing the Osogbo judgment until the motions before the court are heard and determined,” the party concluded.
The Action Alliance called for strict adherence to the rule of law and urged INEC to respect the hierarchy of the courts, noting that the sanctity of judicial decisions, especially from appellate courts must be upheld to protect democratic institutions.
