Politics
2027: Court affirms INEC’s powers to fix party primaries timetable, voids deadlines
An Abuja Federal High Court has affirmed the powers of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to fix timelines for political parties to conduct their primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The court, however, ruled that the electoral body cannot shorten statutory timelines provided under the Electoral Act 2026 for submission and substitution of candidates.
Justice J.K. Omotosho delivered the judgment in a suit filed by the Social Democratic Party, SDP, challenging aspects of INEC’s timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 elections.
Certified True Copy of the judgment dated May 26, 2026, showed that the court upheld INEC’s authority to prescribe timelines for party primaries and related political activities.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/720/2026, the SDP had questioned whether INEC possessed the legal powers to compel political parties to conduct their primaries within timelines fixed by the commission.
Ruling on the matter, Justice Omotosho held that election timetables lawfully include timelines for party primaries, submission of membership registers and other electoral activities.
“This Honourable Court hereby declares that Election Timetable is a chain of events or actions which include submission of membership register of political parties to be used for the purpose of primaries and fix timeframes within which political parties are to organize their primary Elections for the purpose of the stated 2027 Election,” the judge ruled.
The court further declared that INEC has constitutional powers to issue and alter election timetables where necessary.
“This Honourable Court hereby declares that the Independent National Electoral Commission is empowered by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and the Electoral Act, 2026 to issue timetable for elections and to even alter same as it deems fit,” the judgment further stated.
Justice Omotosho also held that INEC acted within its powers by requesting membership registers from political parties and fixing timelines for party primaries.
However, the court partly upheld the SDP’s claims by ruling that INEC could not lawfully abridge the 120-day period stipulated under Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act for submission of candidates’ particulars.
The court consequently voided the August 29 and September 16, 2026 deadlines fixed by INEC for submission of nomination forms for presidential, National Assembly, governorship and House of Assembly elections.
Justice Omotosho subsequently ordered the electoral commission to amend aspects of the 2027 election timetable to comply strictly with sections 29(1) and 31 of the Electoral Act 2026.
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The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has cleared the air on the rigging allegation of one of its presidential candidates, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen.
Speaking during an interview on ‘Politics Today’, a programme on Channels Television, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said they do not have any evidence to support or deny the allegation.
DAILY POST reports that Hayatu-Deen had announced that he would not attend the party’s presidential election results announcement, citing concerns over alleged widespread irregularities in the exercise.
Reacting, the party’s spokesman said, “We don’t have any evidence to be able to support his position or to deny his position because we’ve not collated the results.
“We’ve not noticed any pattern in the result, and we’ve not seen enough to be able to establish a pattern.
“Eleven states’ results have been received so far. We are still awaiting other results. Any moment from now we are going to start the collation.”
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By Luminous Jannamike
ABUJA — Former Minister of Transportation and presidential aspirant on the platform of the African Democratic Congress, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, on Tuesday rejected the outcome of the party’s presidential primary, accusing the leadership of disenfranchising members and manipulating the process.
The rejection opens a fresh crisis within the ADC at a critical moment for the opposition party, which has been presenting itself as a credible alternative to the ruling All Progressives Congress ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
In a statement posted on X, Amaechi said he was rejecting what he described as ‘concocted results’ following reports of widespread voter disenfranchisement during the primary across the country.
Amaechi said, “I had initially stated that I will only accept the outcome of the Primaries if the process was free, fair, and transparent, and I stand by my word.
“I will not accept results from a process that does not reflect the values that the ADC had pledged to uphold, to rescue Nigerians from the impunity and gross mismanagement that our country is currently facing in the hands of the ruling party.”
The former Rivers State governor alleged that nearly 80 per cent of party members were denied the opportunity to vote during the exercise.
“There’s no way that about eighty percent of members of the party were not allowed to vote, and you expect me to accept such results. Then what makes us different from the others?” he asked.
Amaechi said the ADC was created to give ordinary Nigerians a voice and offer a genuine alternative to the kind of politics it once condemned.
Criticising the party leadership, Amaechi said: “A party that criticizes the ruling APC and INEC for vote buying, rigging and writing of results, cannot be engaged in vote buying, writing of results, and other electoral malpractices that leads to the disenfranchisement of voters who are party members. This is not acceptable!”
The remarks are expected to deepen tensions within the ADC and intensify scrutiny of the party’s presidential primary process as opposition parties prepare for the 2027 general election.
The post 2027: ‘You can’t condemn rigging and write results’, Amaechi tells ADC appeared first on Vanguard News.
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The Court of Appeal sitting in Yola on Tuesday affirmed Ibrahim Sadiq Dasin as chairman of the Adamawa State chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
The Appeal Court held that, contrary to the ruling of a lower court earlier this month, the state congress of the ADC held in April 2026 which produced Dasin and other members of his executive committee was valid.
Delivering its ruling on Tuesday, the appellate court granted the appeal of the committee that conducted the congress and, consequently, invalidated the verdict of the lower court which nullified the congress in the state.
The Court of Appeal declared that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the respondents’ claims, given the state of judicial decisions on intra-party disputes relating to congresses, leadership positions and internal administration of political parties.
DAILY POST recalls that the Adamawa State High Court in Yola had three weeks ago annulled the local government and state congresses of the ADC conducted last month, citing breach of due process.
Justice Ahmed Isa of the High Court had delivered judgment in a suit filed by Shehu Yohanna, the ADC state chairman, before the congress that produced Dasin, who challenged the legality of the congresses, stating that the proceedings failed to comply with established legal frameworks and party procedures.
Yohanna had also insisted that the congresses were conducted even after the State High Court ordered that they be halted pending its substantive ruling on the suit.
The lower court had later given its ruling nullifying the said congress, prompting the committee that conducted the congress to take its appeal to the higher court.
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