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PDP, LP Call on INEC to Cancel February 25 Elections
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The vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ifeanyi Okowa; and his Labour Party (LP) counterpart, Datti Baba-Ahmed have unanimously called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to cancel the February 25 presidential and National Assembly elections.
Okowa and Baba-Ahmed stated this at a joint briefing in Abuja on Tuesday.
Okowa, who is also the governor of Delta State, said “it is clearly stated in that Electoral Act that all election results must be transmitted at the polling unit level” and that it is only the results electronically transmitted from the polling units that can be collated at the centre.
“If you have not transmitted those results, it means that you have actually not conducted elections under the very law that we all applauded.
“So, the right thing for the INEC chairman to do is to cancel the elections,” the PDP vice-presidential candidate stated.
On his part, Datti Baba-Ahmed adopted Okowa’s position. “I hereby adopt the submission of my brother, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of the PDP,” he said.
“Now, we are witnessing the fact that the next government will be built on outright illegality.”
The LP vice-presidential candidate warned the INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu not to promote illegality, saying he should respect the rule of law.
Below is the full text of the briefing:
Being text of the joint press conference by the Vice Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Dr Datti Ahmed on Tuesday, February 28, 2023 at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.
On Saturday, the 25th of February, 2023, Nigerians from the different parts of our great country braced all manner of challenges to cast their votes for their preferred candidates. And having cast their votes, they are expectantly awaiting the results of the presidential and National Assembly election. We wish to state for the records that last weekend’s election was a sham. It was neither free nor fair. What played out yesterday at the National Collation Center exposes the National Chairman of playing to a predetermined script. Our position remains that the election and transmission of the results must be in tandem with the Electoral Act and the INEC guidelines.
There is no doubt that INEC is under a statutory obligation to transmit election results electronically. Paragraph 38 of the INEC manual made pursuant to section 149 of the Electoral Act 2022 and the 1999 constitution as amended provides for this. That paragraph, which deals with the transmission of results at the polling units, is crucial, and it imposes statutory obligations on the part of INEC to upload polling units results on its portal.
There is no doubt that polling units results are the pyramid upon which other results are built. Therefore, it is required that the moment polls come to a close and the results are declared, the results must be uploaded on INEC server or portal.
Paragraph 38 of INEC Manual 2022 made pursuant to the provisions of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended and section 149 of of the Electoral Act 2022 provides that: “On completion of all the Polling Unit voting and results procedures, the Presiding Officer shall:
(i) Electronically transmit or transfer the result of the Polling Unit, direct to the collation system as prescribed by the Commission.
(ii) Use the BVAS to upload a scanned copy of the EC8A to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), as prescribed by the Commission.
(iii) Take the BVAS and the original copy of each of the forms in tamper-evident envelope to the Registration Area/Ward Collation Officer, in the company of Security Agents. The Polling Agents may accompany the Presiding Officer to the RA/Ward Collation Centre.” It is mandatory and compulsory. INEC has no option. So, the failure to upload results and follow the procedures set out in paragraph 38 of the manual made pursuant to the Electoral Act 2022, is a fundamental breach that has the potential of rendering the election results that did not follow those procedures null and void.
For clarity, Section 64 (4) (a) and (b) of the Electoral Act, 2022 specifically provide thus:
“A collation officer or returning officer at an election shall collate and announce the result of an election subject to his or her verification and confirmation that the –
(a) number of accredited voters stated on the collated result are correct
and consistent with the number of accredited voters recorded and transmitted
directly from polling units under section 47 (2) of this Act; and
(b) “votes stated on the collated result are correct and consistent with the votes or results recorded and transmitted directly from Polling Units under Section (60) (4) of this Act”.
Consequent on the above Section 60 (4) of the Electoral Act 2022, any result announced by INEC is ultra vires, illegal, and of no consequence unless they are results already transmitted DIRECTLY from the Polling Units. So procedurally, INEC cannot continue to announce results that are yet to be transmitted as expressly stated in the relevant Sections of the Electoral Act.
The law is that where the law has set out the procedures to be followed, that procedures and no other must be followed.
The argument that INEC guidelines have no force of law is idle and wayward arguments. This is not even the question of alterations of the results. It is a question of non-compliance with mandatory statutory provisions. The argument that it is only when the Chief Electoral Officer of the Federation announces the winner of the Presidential election that the results can be uploaded on the INE C portal cannot be correct. There must be uploading of results at the polling units after the polling officers had announced the winner at the polling units.
Finally, we call on the commission to thread on the path of honour by cancelling the election outright and commence the process of a fresh election that will not only be credible but will be seen to be credible by Nigerians.
Headlines
Tinubu Warns Politicians, Supporters Against Violence, Irresponsible Conduct As Campaigns Gather Momentum
President Bola Tinubu has warned politicians and their supporters against violence and other irresponsible conduct, as political activities gather momentum ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Tinubu said his administration would not tolerate violence during political campaigns, urging presidential hopefuls, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, as well as other political leaders, to promote peaceful political engagement.
The President issued the warning through a statement by the State House on Friday, November 13, 2026, following reports of violence at political events in different parts of the country.
He condemned all forms of political violence, insisting that campaigns should focus on issues and ideas capable of improving the welfare of Nigerians and promoting national development.
Tinubu also committed to ensuring peaceful, free and fair elections in 2027, urging politicians and their supporters across party lines to conduct themselves responsibly.
He said belonging to different political parties or pursuing different political ambitions should not make Nigerians enemies.
“As Nigerians, we are members of the same household living in different rooms. Therefore, our politics must elevate human conditions and focus on national progress and development,” he said.
The President reiterated his directive to security agencies to be firm against individuals involved in activities capable of disrupting public order.
He stressed that all political parties and candidates must be allowed to campaign freely across the country without intimidation or threats to their safety.
“We shall not tolerate any irresponsible conduct by politicians and their supporters,” Tinubu warned.
He authorised security agencies to confront thuggery and other anti-social and anti-democratic activities with full force, adding that his administration remained committed to an orderly and peaceful electoral process.
Headlines
Court Orders INEC to Publish Adebutu’s Name as Ogun PDP Governorship Candidate Within 24 Hours
The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to publish the name of Ladi Adebutu as the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 Ogun State election within 24 hours.Judge Peter Lifu gave the order on Friday in a judgement following a suit filed by Mr Adebutu and the PDP to challenge INEC’s exclusion of his name from the final list of candidates for the upcoming 6 February 2027 governorship election.
He consequently declared the exclusion “unlawful, unconstitutional, null and void.”
In resolving the issues raised by parties, Mr Lifu held that the power to nominate candidates for “elections rested solely with political parties.” He ruled that “Neither INEC nor any other authority could take over that responsibility.”
The judge faulted the commission for waiting more than four months before “belatedly publishing the final list on 10 October” without informing the plaintiffs of any intention to exclude their candidate.
He questioned INEC’s decision to raise the issue after the primary had been conducted and monitored, when it could have raised any concerns in its monitoring report.
Mr Lifu warned that allowing INEC to exercise such powers would amount to a “dangerous show of power”.
He said such authority could allow the commission to disqualify candidates only days before an election, adding that INEC did not possess absolute powers.
The judge also held that the membership register tendered before the court contained Mr Adebutu’s name against serial number 1536.
He said the evidence established that Mr Adebutu was a member of the PDP and that it was the political party, not INEC, that had the authority to determine its membership.
The judge questioned why INEC considered it its responsibility to determine who belonged to a political party, holding that the commission exceeded its powers by omitting Mr Adebutu’s name.
The dispute
The dispute followed the exclusion of Mr Adebutu and his running mate from the final list of candidates published by INEC for the 6 February 2027 Ogun State governorship election.
INEC published the final list on 10 October, featuring 13 governorship candidates but excluding the PDP from the race.
INEC said its decision followed the PDP’s alleged failure to comply with the membership register requirements under the Electoral Act 2026.
Section 77(5)–(7) of the Act requires political parties to submit their membership registers to INEC within the stipulated period. The provisions also empower the commission to scrutinise the registers.
In September, the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the provisions in a case involving the Zenith Labour Party and INEC. The ruling affirmed the requirement for political parties to submit their membership registers before conducting valid primaries.
Following the exclusion, the PDP and Mr Adebutu approached the Federal High Court in Abuja in October, asking it to compel INEC to recognise him as the party’s governorship candidate.
The plaintiffs challenged the commission’s decision, arguing that it violated their right to fair hearing and breached provisions of the Electoral Act. They asked the court to set aside the decision and direct INEC to publish Mr Adebutu’s name as the party’s governorship candidate within 24 hours of its order.
INEC opposed the suit, maintaining that Mr Adebutu’s name was missing from the PDP membership register submitted to the commission. It therefore urged the court to dismiss the suit for being incompetent.
Source: Premium Times
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