The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has dismissed as false and unfounded allegations by the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, that the Commission removed the party’s validly nominated candidates for certain State House of Assembly constituencies in Anambra and Benue States and replaced them with unauthorised names.
The Commission explained that candidate nomination remains, by law, the exclusive responsibility of political parties, stressing that it has no legal authority to select, insert, or substitute a candidate for any party, as its role in monitoring party primaries is strictly a statutory oversight function.
According to a statement by the Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, IVEC, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, on Tuesday, all 22 registered political parties designated two technically trained officers to manage their nomination process following training organised by the Commission.
He noted that portal access codes were subsequently issued directly and in person to each party’s National Chairman, with no room for proxy access.
Haruna further explained that the list of candidates for each party was generated strictly from submissions jointly signed by the party’s National Chairman and National Secretary, in line with Form EC9 series, A–G, making any claim that the Commission independently uploaded or altered candidate information both unfounded and untrue.
He added that the Commission is in possession of Form EC9E, on which the candidates in question were duly listed and submitted, bearing the signatures of the NDC’s National Chairman and National Secretary.
INEC reiterated its commitment to transparency, accountability, and a level playing field for all stakeholders in the electoral process.
