The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has commenced efforts to introduce tougher regulations for the operations of political parties ahead of the 2027 General Election.
While delivering remarks at a three-day Technical Review Workshop, in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, INEC Chairman, Prof Joash Amupitan, SAN, indicated the commission will tighten its regulatory stance.
The Technical Review Workshop, which opened on March 4, 2026, in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, is being conducted with support from the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, WFD.
The exercise follows the enactment of the Electoral Act 2026 and the release of INEC’s revised timetable for the 2027 polls.
Amupitan described the exercise as a critical institutional realignment to harmonise the Commission’s regulatory framework with the new legal regime.
“We meet at a watershed moment in our democratic journey,” he said, noting that the Electoral Act 2026 has recalibrated statutory timelines and compressed the operational window for electoral activities.
Under the revised timetable, Presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on January 16, 2027, while Governorship and State Assembly elections are scheduled for February 6, 2027.
Amupitan stressed that the review goes beyond routine administrative updates, describing it as a deliberate move to sanitise party operations and entrench higher standards of accountability.
“We are not just editing a document. We are aligning our Regulations and Guidelines with the 2026 Act to ensure our electoral architecture is robust in theory and practice,” he said.
He identified party primaries—scheduled between April 23 and May 30, 2026—as a major reform focus, warning that opaque nomination processes could erode public confidence and fuel pre-election litigation.
“The quality of internal party democracy directly affects the credibility of elections conducted by INEC,” he cautioned.
The chairman also decried persistent intra-party disputes that frequently end up in court, often drawing the Commission into avoidable litigation.
According to him, the revised guidelines will introduce stricter benchmarks for membership records, financial transparency, and the inclusion of women, youth and persons with disabilities.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Election and Party Monitoring Committee, Dr. Baba Bila, described the review as timely and strategic, while WFD Country Director, Adebowale Olorunmola, reaffirmed the organisation’s technical support.
INEC said the exercise would produce a clearer regulatory framework to strengthen political parties and safeguard the integrity of the 2027 General Election.
