By our Reporter
Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN), Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),on Tuesday defended the Commission’s decision to appeal two recent Federal High Court judgments challenging aspects of its timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 General Election, saying a lack of harmonised electoral timelines could create uncertainty and undermine the Commission’s constitutional mandate.
Speaking at the Second Quarterly Consultative Meeting with Leaders of Political Parties held at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, Amupitan said the judgments raised important legal questions regarding the extent of INEC’s constitutional and statutory powers to coordinate and regulate electoral activities across the country.
According to him, the first judgment, delivered on May 20, 2026, in the case of Youth Party v. INEC, questioned certain timelines contained in the Commission’s election timetable, while a subsequent ruling in Social Democratic Party (SDP) v. INEC on May 26 affirmed INEC’s authority to issue an electoral timetable but nullified some timelines relating to the nomination and substitution of candidates.
“These judgments raise important legal questions concerning the extent of the Commission’s constitutional and statutory powers in coordinating and regulating electoral activities,” Amupitan said.
He disclosed that the Commission had filed appeals against both judgments and taken the necessary legal steps to obtain authoritative pronouncements from the appellate courts.
The INEC chairman explained that the activities contained in the election timetable were not isolated events but interconnected operational processes essential to the orderly conduct of elections. He noted that several critical electoral activities had no express statutory timelines under the Electoral Act but must still be accommodated within the overall electoral calendar.
Among such activities, he listed the submission and verification of party membership registers, monitoring of party primaries nationwide, pre-upload of primary election results on the Commission’s portal, printing of ballot papers and result sheets, quality assurance procedures, configuration of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices, and compliance with statutory obligations, including inviting political parties to inspect election materials.
“The Commission therefore considers it imperative that all electoral activities be harmonised within a coherent and workable framework that promotes certainty, transparency, administrative efficiency and equal treatment of all political parties,” he said.
Amupitan assured stakeholders that despite the pending appeals, the Commission remained committed to conducting the 2027 General Election in strict compliance with the Constitution and the Electoral Act.
The INEC chairman also provided an update on preparations for the Ekiti State governorship election scheduled for June 20, saying the state’s voters’ register now contained 1,059,360 registered voters following the addition of 66,664 new registrants through the Continuous Voter Registration exercise. He added that 2,103 cases of double registration had been invalidated to protect the integrity of the register.
He said logistics arrangements, technology deployment and the training of election officials were progressing according to schedule, while assuring that all 2,445 polling units across the state’s 16 local government areas would open simultaneously at 8:30 a.m. on election day.
Amupitan further disclosed that bye-elections would be conducted on the same day in six constituencies, including Enugu North, Nasarawa North, Rivers South-East and Ondo South Senatorial Districts, as well as Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency in Kano State and Zuru State Constituency in Kebbi State.
On preparations for the 2027 General Election, he announced that INEC would issue official access codes to political parties on June 26 for the Candidate Nomination Portal through which parties would upload the names and particulars of nominated candidates.
He warned that the portal was fully automated and would close automatically at the expiration of the prescribed deadline without extension, urging political parties to ensure their ICT personnel and relevant officials were adequately prepared.
The chairman also called on political parties to intensify voter education and mobilisation efforts in support of the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise and encouraged eligible Nigerians to register and collect their Permanent Voter Cards.
He expressed concern over pending court cases involving the internal leadership of several political parties, describing the litigation as an unnecessary distraction and urging party leaders to resolve the disputes amicably.
Speaking on behalf of political parties, National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Dr. Yusuf Mamman Dantalle, backed INEC’s decision to appeal the judgments, saying the conflicting court pronouncements had created confusion and uncertainty for parties, candidates and other stakeholders.
Dantalle, however, called on the National Assembly to undertake a comprehensive review of the Electoral Act 2026 to address operational challenges exposed during the recently concluded party primaries.
He specifically criticised Section 84(2) of the Act, which restricts political parties to consensus or direct primaries while eliminating the option of indirect primaries, saying the provision placed considerable strain on the nomination process.
“Electoral laws should promote democratic participation, strengthen political institutions, and advance the national interest rather than create avoidable obstacles to effective political competition,” he said.
The IPAC chairman also condemned recent incidents of political violence in Osun State and urged political actors to embrace issue-based campaigns as the country approaches the Ekiti and Osun governorship elections and the 2027 General Election.
“No political ambition is worth the loss of human life, the destruction of property, or the destabilisation of communities,” he said.
