With 73 days left before the 2027 general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is facing mounting questions over its compliance with the Electoral Act 2026, particularly its handling of the preliminary voters’ register and candidate nominations.
Stakeholders have faulted the commission for allegedly failing to meet statutory obligations while taking political parties and candidates to court over missed deadlines, raising concerns about its neutrality and institutional accountability.
The concerns come as INEC said it had removed more than 1.27 million invalid voter records from the national register after identifying about 1.5 million questionable entries.
The controversy has brought renewed attention to two critical areas of the electoral process: the submission of political parties’ membership registers and nomination of candidates, as well as the publication of the preliminary voters’ register.
Although INEC has defended its position on party membership registers by citing judicial pronouncements, particularly the Supreme Court’s September 2026 decision, stakeholders insist that the commission must demonstrate consistency, transparency and impartiality in interpreting and applying the law.
The concerns have also raised a fundamental question about who holds the electoral umpire accountable when it allegedly fails to comply with the same laws it is constitutionally mandated to enforce.
Credit: guardian.ng
