A Federal High Court sitting in Akure has dismissed a case seeking to disqualify Olayide Adelami as the deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the November 16 Ondo state election.

The lawsuit, filed by Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), argued that Adelami’s candidacy was invalid due to inconsistencies in his name. Ajayi claimed that Adelami was known by several different names, such as “Adelami Owolabi Jackson” and “Olaide Owolabi Adelami,” and asked for his disqualification based on these discrepancies.

However, Justice Toyin Bolaji Adegoke, who gave the ruling, sided with Adelami, dismissing the case. The judge said Ajayi did not have the legal right to file the suit, as he was not a member of the APC nor a candidate in the party’s primaries that chose Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and Adelami as the party’s candidates. Justice Adegoke also ruled that the case was filed too late, beyond the 14-day deadline set by the Electoral Act. Additionally, the court stated that the suit was improperly filed as an originating summons instead of a Writ of Summons, making the case invalid.

“The plaintiffs have no legal right to challenge the qualification of the second defendant (Adelami) under Section 29(5) of the Electoral Act 2022,” Justice Adegoke stated, adding that Ajayi’s party could not contest the APC’s internal processes.

Adelami’s lawyer, Dr. Remi Olatubora, explained that the name variations were due to the different arrangements of his name on his academic certificates, such as his 1974 WAEC certificate and his 1982 degree from Ambrose Alli University.