A businessman and cleric, Okwudili Ossai, has taken legal action against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC). He claims they wrongly changed his name on the NDC’s Enugu North District ticket for the upcoming 2027 general elections.
Ossai, who is also known as Bishop Oscar, is challenging the addition of Asadu’s name to the INEC portal as the candidate for the Enugu North District in the 2027 election.
He filed the suit on 5 August at the Federal High Court in Abuja. His legal team is led by F. M. Nworah, according to a court document seen by PREMIUM TIMES.
In addition to INEC (1st defendant) and NDC (2nd), Asadu is also listed as the third defendant in the case.
Ossai informed the court that he took part in the NDC’s primary election on 29 May. He received the most votes and was declared the winner.
The businessman said he found out about the name change when he got a Certified True Copy of the candidate information uploaded to INEC on 23 July. This document recognized Mr Asadu as the party’s candidate for the district.
Mr Ossai is asking the court to decide if INEC can accept and publish the name of any candidate other than the one who got the highest votes during the party’s primary on 29 May. He also wants the court to rule on whether NDC officials can legally submit another person's name after he won the primary.
Besides these questions, Mr Ossai wants the court to confirm that he is the rightful candidate of the NDC for Enugu North District. He says he followed all the steps during the primary and got the most votes.
He is asking the court to order the NDC to send his nomination documents, including the necessary electoral forms, to INEC for processing and publication as the party’s candidate for the district.
The plaintiff also urged the court to cancel what he calls the wrongful submission and uploading of Mr Asadu’s name and nomination documents for the Enugu North District seat.
He wants the court to stop the defendants from recognizing or dealing with Mr Asadu or anyone else as the NDC candidate for Enugu North District while the case is ongoing.
Mr Ossai recalled that another NDC aspirant, Vincent Obetta, had previously filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja against his victory in the party’s 29 May senatorial primary for the district.
He noted that in its counter-affidavit during that time, the NDC confirmed that he won the primary after taking part in all stages and securing the highest number of valid votes.
According to him, the NDC told the court that its primary was well-organized and supervised by its National Working Committee through a proper electoral committee, according to the party’s constitution, electoral guidelines, and the Electoral Act 2026.
Mr Ossai insisted that the NDC asked the court to dismiss or strike out the previous suit, maintaining that he emerged from the properly conducted primary and remained the legitimate candidate for Enugu North District.
To back his claim, the plaintiff attached documents from the earlier court matter, including an NDC affidavit that confirmed his candidacy at that time.
PREMIUM TIMES got a copy of the originating summons dated 5 August 2026. In the summons, the court instructed the defendants to respond within seven days, starting from the day they are served.
The court also reminded the defendants that they need to file their counter-affidavit within 10 days as per the 2026 Practice Direction.
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