The Action People Party (APP) has taken APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji and INEC to the Federal High Court in Osogbo, alleging certificate forgery and a name scandal related to his credentials for the Osun governorship election on August 15, 2026.

The APP, in the lawsuit with number FHC/05/CS/50b026/ on 16th March 2026, filed by R.T Abdullateef Esq on behalf of the plaintiff, which named INEC, Mr Bola Oyebamiji, and the APC, respectively, accused the APC candidate of submitting a fake certificate to the electoral commission and asked the court to determine if INEC has violated Sections 182(1)(j),  285(14)(c) of 1999 Nigerian Constitution, which speaks against forgery and the punishment for breaking such laws.

Section 182(1)(j) of the Nigerian Constitution explicitly states that a person shall not be qualified for election to the office of governor if “he has presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission”. It also mandates INEC to enforce compliance with the Constitution by ensuring that an attempt to submit a fake certificate, if proven, constitutes a violation of this constitutional provision.

At stake is the addition of Munirudeen to his name, popularly known as Bola Oyebamiji. It is alleged that he got an appointment as the Director General of the National Inland Waterways Agency as Munirudeen Oyebamiji, but Munirudeen does not appear on any of his certificates, nor did he tender any affidavit for a change or alteration to his name.

The APP in its suit alleges that the APC candidate submitted a fake certificate to the electoral commission. For determination by the Court are the following issues:

“WHETHER by virtue of Section 182(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), the 1st Defendant was right to have proceeded to publish the name of the 2nd Defendant as the candidate of the 3rd Defendant for the purpose of Osun State Governorship election earlier scheduled for 8th August, 2026, now re-scheduled for 15th August, 2026, when the said 2nd Defendant, in the process of his purported nomination, had submitted a fake certificate to the 1st Defendant.

“WHETHER by virtue of the entire information and whole lots of documents supplied to the 1st Defendant by the 2nd Defendant, the purported publication of the 2nd Defendant as the candidate of the 3rd Defendant for the purpose of Osun State Governorship election earlier scheduled for 8th August, 2026, now re-scheduled for 15th August, 2026, ought to be accepted in view of the clear provision of section 182(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended).

“WHETHER the 1st Defendant has not derogated from the provision of section 182(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) by accepting the purported nomination of the 2nd Defendant as candidate of the 3rd Defendant who submitted a fake certificate to the 1st Defendant for Osun State Governorship election earlier scheduled for 8th August, 2026, now re-scheduled for 15th August, 2026, as such entitling the plaintiff to seek reliefs against the 1st Defendant especially, and of course, against all of the Defendants, by virtue of the provision of section 285(14)(c) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). ON THE DETERMINATION OF THE ABOVE QUESTIONS, the Plaintiff seeks the following reliefs,” the suit reads.

What the Electoral 2026 Says

Despite the position of the Nigerian Constitution against certificate forgery, the newly signed Electoral Act 2026 is silent on the issue of certificate forgery and allied matters, which has moved the issue of certificate forgery and allied matters to pre-election matters, contrary to the Electoral Acts 2011 and 2022.

It will be recalled that one David Lyon, who won the Bayelsa State election in 2019, was sacked by the Supreme Court because of the discrepancies in the name and certificate of his deputy. On 13 February 2020—the eve of his swearing-in—the Supreme Court of Nigeria nullified his election. The court ruled that his running mate, Senator Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, had submitted forged certificates to INEC, which effectively voided their joint ticket.

According to Section 138 of the new Electoral Act 2026, “An election may be questioned on any of the following grounds: (a) that the election was invalid due to corrupt practices or non-compliance with the provisions of this Act; or (b) that the respondent was not duly elected by a majority of lawful votes cast at the election.”

The subsection also states that “an act or omission that may be contrary to an instruction or directive of the Commission or of an officer appointed for the election but is not contrary to the provisions of this Act shall not by itself be a ground for questioning the election.”

This is a stark contrast between the provisions of the Electoral Acts 2022 and the recently enacted 2026. Section 134, subsections 1(a-d) of the Electoral Act 2022 addressed the issue of certificate forgery.

Given the clear contradiction between the newly signed Electoral Act and the Nigerian Constitution, political pundits and legal experts have already begun to raise concerns about electoral matters and litigation in the coming days.

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