Senator Olubiyi Fadeyi has rejected claims that a recent Supreme Court judgment restoring provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 disqualified him from contesting the 2027 election for Osun Central Senatorial District on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party.

Fadeyi, who currently represents Osun Central in the Senate, said on Saturday that the process through which he emerged as the PDP candidate complied with the Constitution, electoral law and the party’s procedures.

His response followed Thursday’s Supreme Court judgment restoring Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026, provisions dealing with political party membership registers and the nomination of candidates.

A seven-member panel of the Supreme Court led by Justice Adamu Jauro allowed an appeal filed by the Independent National Electoral Commission and overturned an earlier Court of Appeal decision that had struck down the provisions.

The apex court held that the disputed sections were not inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution and restored the earlier decision of the Federal High Court, which had dismissed the constitutional challenge brought by the Zenith Labour Party.

The Supreme Court also awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP.

Section 77(5) of the Electoral Act provides that only members whose names appear on the membership register submitted by a political party to INEC within the prescribed period can participate in the party’s primaries, congresses or conventions.

Section 77(6) requires political parties to use the membership register already submitted to INEC for those exercises, while Section 77(7) provides that a party which fails to submit its membership register within the required period cannot field a candidate.

Section 84(2) provides for direct primaries or consensus as methods through which political parties may nominate candidates for elective offices.

Following the judgment, claims emerged that the decision could affect Fadeyi’s candidacy for the 2027 Osun Central election.

Fadeyi disputed that interpretation.

In a statement issued by his media office, the senator maintained that there was no court decision specifically disqualifying him and said the PDP followed the relevant electoral requirements in producing its candidates for the 2027 general election.

He also noted that neither he nor the PDP was a party to the suit that resulted in the Supreme Court judgment.

The case arose from a challenge instituted by the Zenith Labour Party against provisions of the Electoral Act governing membership registers and nomination procedures.

Fadeyi further argued that the judgment did not automatically invalidate candidates whose names had already been published by INEC.

That remains his position on the legal effect of the ruling rather than a separate determination by the Supreme Court specifically on his candidacy.

The final list of senatorial candidates published ahead of the 2027 election lists Fadeyi Olubiyi Oluwole as the PDP candidate for Osun Central.

Other candidates reported on the list for the district include Adegoke Rasheed Adekunle of the All Progressives Congress, Olaoye Akeem of the African Democratic Congress, Oduyemi Morenikeji Nathaniel of the National Democratic Congress and Ganiyu Ayobami Olaoluwa of Accord.

The Supreme Court case did not directly determine which individual should represent the PDP in the Osun Central election.

Instead, it dealt with the validity of provisions of the Electoral Act regulating party membership registers and methods for nominating candidates.

The distinction is significant because the restoration of the provisions establishes the legal rules political parties must comply with, while any specific challenge to an individual candidate would depend on the facts, applicable procedures and any subsequent legal proceedings.

Fadeyi currently represents Osun Central in the National Assembly.

Earlier this month, Verita Post reported that the senator flagged off a 7.5MVA transformer substation, a two-kilometre road and solar streetlight projects in Ila-Orangun as part of constituency interventions in the senatorial district.

With the 2027 election approaching, the legal interpretation of party nomination procedures is expected to remain an important issue for political parties following the Supreme Court’s restoration of the disputed Electoral Act provisions.

For now, Fadeyi’s name appears on the reported final list of candidates for Osun Central, while the senator maintains that Thursday’s judgment did not terminate his re-election bid.