The National Industrial Court sitting in Benin City, Edo State, has issued an interim order restraining all parties involved in the ongoing legal dispute over the dissolution of the Edo State Independent Electoral Commission (EDSIEC) from taking further actions that could undermine the court’s final judgment.
The ruling was delivered by Justice A. Adewemimo in response to a suit filed by the former EDSIEC Chairman, Justice James Oyomire (retd), and six other members of the dissolved commission. The claimants Mrs. Gladys Idahor, Uduafi Gabriel, Mr. Felix Ebhota, Mr. Anthony Okekuoyen, Mr. Michael Ekhaisomi, and Mr. Vincent Aimienota—are challenging their removal by Governor Monday Okpebholo before the expiration of their five-year tenure.
Through their counsel, Gabriel Uduafi, the claimants sought an order to halt the inauguration of a new electoral commission pending the determination of the suit. The defendants include Governor Okpebholo, the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, the Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Jonathan Aifuobhokhan, and the newly appointed members of the reconstituted EDSIEC.
In the interim order dated July 22, 2025, the court barred all parties from taking steps that could render the final judgment ineffective. This followed Uduafi’s disclosure that despite a pending motion for interlocutory injunction, the 4th defendant, Speaker Aifuobhokhan, had released a timetable for local government elections.
Justice Adewemimo upheld the principle that no party in a pending suit should take any action capable of rendering the court’s decision nugatory. She also clarified that the death of the 1st claimant, Justice Oyomire, does not affect the suit’s validity, as the remaining six claimants continue to actively prosecute the matter.
According to the affidavit filed by the claimants, Oyomire and his colleagues were validly appointed on March 23, 2022, with a tenure ending March 23, 2027. They contend that under the Nigerian Constitution and relevant state laws, EDSIEC members can only be removed for proven misconduct or incapacity, and with a two-thirds majority resolution of the House of Assembly—conditions allegedly unmet in their case.
The claimants allege that their removal was communicated via a “Government Special Announcement” issued on December 17, 2024, directing all state commission members to hand over government property immediately.
