Welcome

Tag: INEC

  • Supreme Court Reserves Judgment in PDP Faction Appeal Over Nullified 2025 National Convention

    The Supreme Court of Nigeria has reserved judgment in the appeal filed by the Kabiru Tanimu Turaki-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), challenging the nullification of its 2025 national convention.

    Court reserves ruling

    A five-member panel of justices led by Justice Lawal Garba announced on Wednesday that a date for judgment will be communicated to all parties after lawyers adopted their final written addresses.

    The faction is asking the apex court to overturn the March 9 ruling of the Court of Appeal, which upheld earlier decisions invalidating the PDP national convention held in Ibadan on November 15 and 16, 2025.

    PDP faction argues internal party matter

    At the Supreme Court, the Turaki-led group argued that the dispute is strictly an internal party affair and not subject to judicial intervention.

    The faction maintained that due process was followed in organising the convention and urged the court to set aside earlier rulings against it.

    Lower courts uphold nullification

    However, lower courts had consistently ruled against the faction, nullifying the convention and restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising its outcome.

    The courts also issued orders affecting access to the party’s national secretariat amid the leadership dispute.

    The Court of Appeal had earlier upheld two Federal High Court judgments in Abuja that barred the PDP from proceeding with the convention until it complied with provisions of the Electoral Act and the 2022 Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties.

    Key court findings

    In one ruling, Justice James Omotosho held that the party failed to conduct valid state congresses as required by law and its constitution, rendering the convention invalid.

    In another decision, Justice Peter Lifu barred the party from proceeding with the exercise until former Jigawa State Governor, Sule Lamido, was allowed to participate in the national chairmanship race.

    The court found that Lamido was unjustly excluded from the process.

    Background to the dispute

    The legal challenge was initiated by aggrieved PDP members, including state executives from Imo, Abia, and the South-South region.

    The cases have deepened the party’s internal leadership crisis, which is now awaiting final resolution at the Supreme Court.

  • Jibrin Ibrahim Raises Fresh Alarm, Accuses INEC Chair Amupitan of Bias

    Senior Fellow at the Centre for Democracy and Development, Prof. Jibrin Ibrahim, has accused the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan, of acting with bias, warning that recent developments could weaken trust in Nigeria’s electoral system ahead of future polls.

    Fresh claims against INEC leadership

    Speaking during a television interview, Ibrahim said early actions under the current INEC chairman suggest a pattern that raises questions about neutrality.

    He noted that although Amupitan is newly appointed, some of the commission’s decisions have already drawn concern from observers.

    “Targeting opposition without basis”

    Ibrahim alleged that certain moves by the electoral body appear to be directed at a major opposition party without clear legal justification.

    “This indicates we have a partisan person, who has come to do the job of his master,” he said.

    “He had partisan opinions in the last election and showed that partisanship openly on X.”

    He added that several legal experts have also questioned the basis of some decisions taken by the commission.

    Why this matters

    According to Ibrahim, perceived bias from INEC could damage public confidence in elections, especially as political activities begin to build toward 2027.

    He warned that trust in the electoral umpire remains a key pillar for credible elections.

    What this means going forward

    The remarks add to ongoing conversations around electoral transparency and accountability in Nigeria.

    As scrutiny of institutions increases, stakeholders say maintaining neutrality will be critical in shaping public perception of future elections.

  • “Stay There, Fight Them, Scatter ADC” — Gbajabiamila Tells Abejide Amid Party Crisis

    Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, has urged ADC lawmaker Leke Abejide to remain in the African Democratic Congress and intensify internal battles within the party amid its ongoing leadership crisis.

    He made the remarks at a birthday event in Abuja, where a video of his comments later surfaced online.

    What happened

    In the viral clip, Gbajabiamila openly encouraged Abejide to stay in the ADC and resist rival factions.

    “I know you to be a committed party man… Stay in that same ADC. Fight them. Scatter them. Hold on to your party,” he said.

    He added that Abejide should ignore opposing voices and continue his political efforts within the party.

    “We like what you are doing. Continue… Nobody can come and take your party away from you,” Gbajabiamila stated.

    ADC crisis deepens

    The ADC has been engulfed in a leadership tussle, with multiple factions battling for control, including a group linked to former Senate President David Mark.

    Abejide is aligned with the Nafiu Bala faction, which is contesting the legitimacy of the rival leadership bloc.

    Abejide’s stance

    The Kogi lawmaker has maintained support for President Tinubu despite remaining in the ADC.

    Speaking on Channels Television, he said his political loyalty cuts across both APC and ADC.

    “My heart is in the APC, and in the ADC… Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and it’s not about party,” he said when asked about his 2027 presidential choice.

    Protest at INEC

    Last week, Abejide and other supporters staged a protest at the headquarters of the Independent National Electoral Commission, rejecting the Mark-led faction.

    They accused the group of attempting to hijack the party’s leadership in violation of its constitution.

    “We are here to urge INEC to do the right thing… These people are hijackers,” Abejide said.

    What this means

    The development highlights growing tensions within the ADC as political alignments begin to shift ahead of the 2027 elections.

    The party’s internal crisis is expected to shape its strength as a potential opposition platform.

     

  • ADC Defies INEC, Vows to Hold Congresses as David Mark Demands Chairman’s Sack

    A high-stakes confrontation between Nigeria’s most prominent opposition coalition and the country’s electoral commission intensified on Friday, as the African Democratic Congress declared it would proceed with its planned party congresses and national convention regardless of the Independent National Electoral Commission’s decision to de-recognise its leadership, a move the party described as a politically motivated attack on democracy ahead of the 2027 elections.

    What triggered the crisis

    The crisis reached a boiling point on Wednesday, April 1, when INEC announced it was removing Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola from its portal as ADC National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively, and would not monitor any congress or convention convened by their faction. INEC cited a Court of Appeal ruling in Suit No. CA/ABJ/145/2026, which directed all parties to maintain the “status quo ante bellum”, that is, the state of affairs before hostilities began, pending the resolution of an ongoing leadership dispute before the Federal High Court.

    The dispute involves a former ADC official, Nafiu Bala Gombe, who claims he never resigned as national chairman and that his signature on a resignation letter was forged. INEC said it received legal letters from Nafiu Bala’s lawyers demanding that Mark and Aregbesola be de-recognised, and determined that since Mark’s leadership was uploaded to the INEC portal seven days after the lawsuit was filed, removing the names was consistent with restoring the status quo.

    ADC: “We are proceeding regardless”

    Addressing a press conference at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre in Abuja on Thursday, ADC National Chairman David Mark described INEC’s action as a direct attack on democracy and accused the commission of taking sides in an internal party dispute. “The only conclusion Nigerians can draw is that the electoral umpire has taken sides and can no longer be trusted,” he said.

    Mark announced that the ADC would proceed with its congresses beginning April 9 and its national convention on April 14, arguing that the law does not make INEC’s attendance a mandatory requirement for internal party processes. “We have duly served INEC notice, and we will proceed accordingly,” he said.

    He called on the ADC’s allies in the international community to take note of what he described as a convergence of legal pressure and political intent by the ruling party. “If you are convinced you have done well, why are you afraid of credible elections?” he asked, directing the question at President Tinubu.

    David Mark demands INEC chairman’s resignation

    Mark went further, calling for the immediate resignation or removal of INEC Chairman Professor Joash Amupitan and other national commissioners, saying the ADC had lost all confidence in their ability to conduct credible elections. “We are convinced they are incapable of conducting any credible election,” he said. He also warned that INEC’s actions could affect the ADC’s participation in the upcoming Osun and Ekiti governorship elections.

    INEC chairman fires back

    Speaking on Arise Television on Friday, INEC Chairman Amupitan defended the commission’s decision, saying the matter was already before a Federal High Court in Abuja and that INEC could not take any step that would prejudice proceedings still before the court. “We have a record of a letter written by ADC sometime ago informing the commission that Nafiu Bala had resigned. Then Nafiu also wrote and contended before the court that he did not resign, and as a matter of fact, that his signature was forged,” he said.

    Amupitan warned the ADC about the potential consequences of proceeding with unsupervised congresses and conventions, citing the Zamfara State precedent. “If they decide to go ahead, let me tell you what happened in Zamfara. At the end of the day, after you have won, the court will declare the election invalid, and the implication is that the person with the second-highest number of votes will be declared the winner,” he said.

    APC denies involvement

    The ruling APC rejected the ADC’s claim that President Tinubu was behind INEC’s action. APC National Secretary Senator Ajibola Basiru said at a separate press conference on Friday that the decision implemented by INEC was a consequence of the dismissal of an appeal filed by Mark’s own faction. “Where does President Bola Tinubu feature in their claims, if not in fallacious and malicious propaganda?” he asked. The APC also described the ADC’s call for Amupitan’s sack as reckless.

    INEC brushes off removal call

    In a statement on Thursday night, INEC also firmly dismissed the calls for its chairman’s removal. The commission said its decision was anchored strictly on compliance with the Court of Appeal order, and not on political considerations. It noted that it had recently registered three new political parties, the Democratic Leadership Alliance, the Nigeria Democratic Congress, and the National Democratic Party, bringing the total number of active parties to 22, which it said was an empirical rebuttal of claims that it supported a one-party agenda.

    What it means for 2027

    The dispute strikes at the heart of Nigeria’s 2027 opposition strategy. The ADC has spent the past three months assembling the most formidable opposition coalition in recent Nigerian history, with Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Kwankwaso, El-Rufai, Amaechi, Tambuwal, and Mark himself all under the same roof. An INEC-enforced leadership freeze — or a court ruling that invalidates the Mark-Aregbesola leadership, could significantly disrupt those plans.

    The Federal High Court is yet to set a hearing date for the substantive case. The Court of Appeal has separately ordered that the matter be granted an accelerated hearing. RNN.NG will continue to follow all developments in this critical dispute.