Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate for Delta, has dismissed claims that the latest Supreme Court judgment on provisions of the Electoral Act has disqualified him from participating in the 2027 central senatorial election.
Omo-Agege said the judgment delivered by the apex court last Thursday did not contain any order specifically directed at him and did not declare him ineligible to contest the election.
His position was contained in a statement issued in Asaba by his Special Adviser on Strategy and Communications, Godwin Anaighe, following reactions from political circles to the Supreme Court’s decision.
The controversy arose after supporters of Senator Ede Dafinone, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, reportedly celebrated the judgment and interpreted the decision as having implications for Omo-Agege’s candidacy.
However, the NDC candidate argued that such an interpretation went beyond what the court actually decided.
According to Omo-Agege, the Supreme Court’s judgment dealt with particular provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 concerning political party membership registers and the process through which candidates are nominated by political parties.
He identified Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) as the provisions restored by the court.
Omo-Agege stressed that the decision on those provisions should not be interpreted as a personal ruling against him.
He maintained that the court did not issue an order removing his name from the electoral process or otherwise barring him from seeking election in 2027.
“The distinction is straightforward: The Court ruled on the relevant provisions of the Electoral Act; it did not issue a candidate-specific ruling against Omo-Agege,” he said.
The senator further based his argument on the electoral records already submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He said his name was included in the NDC membership register forwarded to INEC before May 10 and subsequently appeared on the commission’s published final list of candidates.
For Omo-Agege, those developments are significant because they demonstrate, in his account, that his candidacy had gone through the relevant party and electoral processes before the current controversy surrounding the interpretation of the Supreme Court judgment.
He therefore urged political actors and members of the public to distinguish between the legal issues considered by the court and claims being circulated for political purposes.
The NDC candidate particularly took issue with what he described as the celebration by Dafinone’s supporters following the judgment.
He said their reaction appeared to be based on an assumption that the ruling had automatically removed him from the contest, an interpretation he described as misplaced.
Omo-Agege argued that a court judgment dealing with statutory provisions cannot automatically be presented as a candidate-specific disqualification unless the court expressly makes such an order.
He said the attempt to portray the judgment as an announcement that he was no longer eligible to contest amounted to a distortion of the decision.
“Turning the judgment into an announcement that I am out of the race amounts to political propaganda rather than an accurate representation of the Court’s decision,” he said.
The disagreement comes as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 elections, with candidates and their supporters increasingly scrutinising legal requirements surrounding party membership, nomination and eligibility.
The interpretation of electoral laws has frequently become a major issue in Nigeria’s election cycle, particularly where disputes emerge over party registers, primaries, nomination procedures and the submission of candidates’ names to INEC.
Against that background, Omo-Agege said political opponents should focus on presenting their programmes and records to voters instead of relying on what he described as an incorrect reading of the Supreme Court’s judgment.
He maintained that he remained committed to his political ambition and would continue preparing for the 2027 contest in Delta Central.
The senator also directly challenged Dafinone to take his campaign to the electorate and explain what he intends to offer voters if he seeks another term.
“If Dafinone wants the Senate seat, he should come to the field with his record, his programme and his arguments for another term,” Omo-Agege said.
His comments effectively shift the focus from the legal controversy to the political contest ahead, with Omo-Agege insisting that his campaign remains active despite the interpretation being placed on the Supreme Court ruling by his opponents.
The statement also underlines the importance of distinguishing between the actual orders contained in a court judgment and political interpretations subsequently attached to such decisions.
While Omo-Agege’s position is that the judgment did not disqualify him, the broader legal implications of the restored provisions of the Electoral Act remain relevant to political parties and candidates preparing for the 2027 elections.
For now, Omo-Agege says he remains in the race and intends to continue his campaign, while challenging his political opponents to engage voters directly through their records, policies and programmes.
The development is likely to sustain debate within Delta’s political circles as parties prepare for the 2027 elections and candidates seek to establish their eligibility and legitimacy before voters.
Omo-Agege’s latest statement is therefore both a response to the interpretation of the Supreme Court judgment and a declaration that he intends to remain active in the political contest unless a competent authority makes a decision specifically affecting his candidacy.