The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed allegations by the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) that it removed the party’s candidates from some State House of Assembly constituencies in Anambra and Benue states and replaced them with names that were not authorised by the party.
INEC said its official records indicate that the disputed candidates were actually included in the nomination forms submitted by the NDC and were endorsed by the party’s National Chairman and National Secretary.
The commission’s Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, made the clarification in a statement issued on Tuesday.
Haruna said INEC was in possession of Form EC9E, which contained the names of the disputed candidates and was duly signed by the NDC’s National Chairman and National Secretary.
The commission stressed that the responsibility for selecting and submitting candidates rests entirely with political parties, adding that INEC has no legal power to independently select, add or replace a candidate nominated by a party.
INEC also clarified the difference between monitoring political party primaries and the actual nomination of candidates.
According to the commission, its role during party primaries is limited to statutory oversight and does not give it the authority to impose or select candidates for political parties.
Ahead of the 2027 general elections, INEC said all 22 registered political parties had nominated two technically trained officials each to manage their candidate nomination processes after participating in training organised by the commission.
The electoral body said the parties’ national chairmen were subsequently given direct access codes to the nomination portal.
INEC explained that candidate lists published for each political party were generated from information submitted by the parties through the Form EC9 series, which were jointly signed by their national chairmen and national secretaries.
The commission therefore described as false claims that it independently uploaded or modified the NDC’s candidate information.
The controversy began after the NDC alleged that individuals it had neither nominated nor approved were listed by INEC as its candidates for certain State House of Assembly constituencies.
The party had claimed that candidates it legitimately nominated were removed and replaced with names unfamiliar to its leadership.
The NDC initially identified affected constituencies in Anambra State and subsequently alleged that similar issues had occurred in parts of Benue and Imo states.
The party’s National Chairman, Moses Cleopas, called on the INEC Chairman to launch an immediate investigation into how the disputed names appeared on the commission’s candidate list.
INEC, however, maintained that its records could be used to establish the origin and history of any candidate information appearing on its electoral portal.
The commission reiterated its commitment to transparency, accountability and a level playing field for all political parties and stakeholders ahead of the 2027 elections.
Source: PUNCH
