The presidential candidate of the Accord Party, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has rejected his exclusion from the final list of presidential candidates released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), insisting that no administrative action can remove him from the 2027 presidential race.
Hashim made his position known in a statement issued in Abuja after INEC published its final list of presidential candidates over the weekend.
He described his exclusion as a matter that remains before the courts, insisting that he remains the duly nominated presidential candidate of the Accord Party.
“I am the candidate of the Accord Party. No one can exclude me from the 2027 presidential election. The court will do justice,” he said.
Hashim argued that Nigeria’s constitutional democracy does not give INEC overriding authority to have the final say in disputes concerning the emergence or exclusion of a political party’s candidate.
He said the courts have adjudicatory powers specifically to ensure that administrative decisions do not become tools for impunity or prevent individuals from exercising legitimate political rights.
“Our democracy does not give INEC any right of finality over who stands as the candidate of a political party. Where there is a dispute over the emergence or exclusion of a candidate, the adjudicatory functions of the courts are provided precisely to prevent impunity and to ensure that no administrative process becomes a pre-planned mechanism for keeping particular candidates off the ballot.
“We have seen this before. In the last Osun governorship election, the courts intervened in circumstances where candidates initially excluded from INEC’s processes were subsequently restored to the ballot. That is why nobody should assume that an administrative publication by INEC is the final word in a matter that is before the courts.”
Hashim has already approached the Federal High Court in Abuja over the dispute, seeking, among other reliefs, an order directing the Accord Party to recognise him as its presidential candidate and forward his name to INEC.
The case has been heard and judgment has been reserved.
His legal challenge is based on his claim that he emerged as the sole winner of the Accord Party’s presidential primary held on May 30, 2026, after paying the required nomination fee. He also stated that INEC officials monitored the exercise.
Hashim maintained that the dispute cannot be conclusively resolved through an administrative publication by the electoral commission.
“The publication by INEC is not the final determination of my candidacy. There is a subsisting legal dispute before the court, and I have confidence in the judicial process.
“I emerged from the presidential primary as the candidate. I have done what the law requires, and I believe the court will uphold the law.
“No individual or administrative action can take away a right that has been lawfully acquired. I remain the presidential candidate of Accord, and we will see this process through to its lawful conclusion,” said Hashim.
The Accord candidate also criticised what he described as political interests that would prefer the 2027 presidential contest to be driven by division, sentiment and weakened opponents instead of substantive national issues.
“We know for a fact that those who have benefited from the dysfunction in Nigeria, together with their enablers across various institutions, are scared stiff of one candidate being on that ballot—Gbenga Hashim.
“I am the candidate they cannot easily fit into their old calculations. I am the candidate capable of winning votes across North and South. I am prepared to fight over issues that matter to ordinary Nigerians and over the future of this country, rather than participate in the politics of division, ethnicity, religion and sentiment.
“They may be comfortable competing against wounded candidates. They may be comfortable with a political environment where Nigerians are forced to choose between factions and personalities. But, they are uncomfortable with a candidate who can speak to Nigerians across the country on the basis of ideas, competence and national interest.
“But, this plot, however sophisticated, shall fail by the grace of God.”
Hashim said the legal dispute was not simply about his personal ambition but also concerned the integrity of political party primaries, internal democracy and the constitutional right of Nigerians to choose their preferred presidential candidate.
“The real issue is whether a political party can conduct a presidential primary, produce a winner, and subsequently prevent that winner from participating in the election.
“If that can happen without judicial scrutiny, then, what happens to internal democracy within political parties? What happens to the right of party members who participated in the primary? And ultimately, what happens to the right of Nigerians to choose who they want on the ballot?
“That is why this case matters beyond Gbenga Hashim. It is about whether the rules of our democracy apply to everyone, including those who occupy powerful institutions.”
He appealed for calm among his supporters and Nigerians who support democratic choice, assuring them that he would continue to pursue the matter through constitutional and legal channels.
“I am not asking anyone to break the law. I am asking that the law be allowed to work.
“We will not be intimidated, we will not be distracted and we will not surrender a legitimate democratic right because somebody has published a list.
“The court will speak, and when it does, we will abide by the judgment.”
Source: Accord Party
