As the final countdown to Saturday’s by-elections across the country ebbs, the major political parties are on the warpath with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the list of candidates for the elections. Checks by the Nigerian Tribune showed anger and frustration by the parties against the commission on the fate of some candidates chosen for the polls. The parties involved include the All Progressives Congress (APC), Labour Party (LP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). The parties are disenchanted with the way INEC is handling the list of candidates submitted for the polls.

The by-elections are to be held in 12 states, and the exercise will cover two senatorial seats, five federal constituencies, and nine state constituencies. The total number of registered voters involved is about 3,553,659, spread across 32 local government areas, 356 wards, and 6,987 polling units. The two senatorial districts are Anambra-South and Edo-Central in Anambra and Edo states respectively. The five federal constituencies are: Ovia South West/Ovia South East (Edo), Babura/Garki (Jigawa), Chikun/Kajuru (Kaduna), Ikenne/Shagamu/Remo North (Ogun), and Ibadan North (Oyo).

Nine state constituencies will involve Ganye (Adamawa), Onitsha North (Anambra), Dekina/Okura (Kogi), Zaria Kewaye and Basawa (Kaduna), Bagwai/Shanono (Kano), Mariga (Niger), Karim Lamido I (Taraba), and Kauran Namoda South (Zamfara).

Forty-eight hours to the elections, the fate of the candidates of the LP hangs in the balance as INEC has not reversed its decision to exclude the party from the polls. The names of the candidates were initially submitted by the Julius Abure-led National Working Committee (NWC). On Tuesday, the Abure-led NWC told the Nigerian Tribune that the party had left the matter in the hands of the courts to decide, just as the national publicity secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, said the “courts will do something soonest.”

When asked whether the party had challenged the decision of INEC in court, Obiora simply replied, “yes.” Last week, the affected candidates, in company with some civil society organisations, protested at the INEC headquarters in Abuja and demanded the reinstatement of the names of LP candidates for the election.

when contacted, the interim leadership of LP headed by Senator Nenadi Usman told the Nigerian Tribune that the camp supported the action of INEC in excluding the candidates because they emerged from illegal primaries, even as it urged the commission to upload the names of the “authentic candidates.” The Senior Special Adviser (Media) to Senator Usman, Mr Ken Asogwa, said the LP had continued to mount pressure on INEC to recognise those he called the “authentic candidates” of the party.

“At this point, the ball is in the court of INEC. It is true that we are in agreement with INEC in removing the names submitted by Abure, but in that same statement that we issued, we also called on INEC to upload the names of our candidates, the authentic Labour Party candidates for the elections,” Asogwa told Nigerian Tribune. According to him, only INEC can answer any further questions concerning the fate of the Labour Party in the by-elections.

SDP tackles INEC over candidates

The SDP also appears to be in a dilemma as INEC is yet to give a nod to the participation of the party in the election. The party is still awaiting INEC to clear its candidates excluded from the polls. The national secretary of the SDP, Dr. Olu Agunloye, however, told the Nigerian Tribune on Tuesday that necessary steps were being taken to resolve all the issues.

“We are optimistic about our candidates being on the ballot for the Saturday by-elections. The court is addressing the matter. We have been asked to come back; we are going there. Our people are on the field canvassing for support. I’m appealing to our party members to remain calm as we are on top of the situation. We are very sure the court will rule in our favour as our candidates were validly nominated,” he said.

In Oyo State, the Ibadan North Federal Constituency by-election is perceived by PDP, APC, SDP and the ADC as a test of strength and capacity. While the other parties are leveraging the unity of purpose among their members, however, this cannot be said of the APC as the members are divided over the choice of candidate for the election. Nine other contenders for the ticket are aggrieved over the process that led to the primaries.

The Oyo State police command said on Wednesday that all markets located in the constituencies where the election would be conducted should remain shut till 5pm on Saturday. Besides, human and vehicular movements will be restricted in the affected areas. All the five parties fielding candidates for the election — APC, PDP, SDP, ADC and the Accord — on Wednesday signed a peace accord at the INEC office in Ibadan, the state capital. The Commissioner of Police, CP Femi Haruna, stressed the need for strict compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act.

In Edo, the PDP, APC and the INEC are embroiled in a war of words over an alleged plot to undermine elections in the state. The Edo PDP, through its caretaker committee chairman, Dr. Tony Aziegbemi, demanded the immediate redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr. Anugbum Onuaha.

“We cannot allow the official to oversee the forthcoming by-elections in Edo State,” the PDP said. The party urged INEC and its chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, to as a matter of urgency meet its demand and boost voter confidence and give assurance on the credibility of the process on Saturday. PDP further demanded that the Electoral Officers (EOs) that participated at the 2024 gubernatorial poll in Oredo, Ikpoba-Okha, Egor, Etsako West, Etsako East, and Akoko Edo to steer clear of the by-elections.

“The areas in the contest are traditional strongholds of the PDP and with the quality and credential of our candidates and the support of the people, including our party supporters and members, we are sure of victory at the polls. As a party, we will not tolerate any form of electoral manipulation. We insist on a fair, credible, and transparent election and urge INEC, security agencies and all stakeholders to ensure that every citizen’s vote counts and is protected,” he said.

Reacting to the allegations of the PDP through a press conference in Benin, Professor Anugbom advised the party to channel its grievances to the national headquarters of INEC, instead of crying wolf where there is none.

“Is it the REC that made them fail in the election? Will the REC be in all the polling units? Will that be possible? They are calling for my removal, even if they remove me, I will go to another state. I am not afraid of being redeployed. What I am doing here is keeping my conscience alive. Election is not an event alone but a process. Even when we have done our own, it does not stop there; the court has the right to say this election was not conducted according to the extant laws and regulations. The mentality in our electoral system is that anybody that loses election will abuse INEC while anybody that wins will say INEC is the best,” Onuoha stated.

He said nine parties, excluding the LP, will participate in the exercise.

Parties sign peace accord in Adamawa

Ahead of the by-election in Ganye LGA of Adamawa State, political parties have signed a peace accord at a meeting convened by the police command in the state. According to the Commissioner of Police in the state, Dankombo Morris, the meeting was aimed at ensuring a smooth and violence-free process on Saturday. Morris urged all political actors to abide by electoral laws, place peace above political ambitions, and caution their supporters against actions that can disrupt the polls.

He said the command had deployed personnel and operational resources to protect voters, as well as sensitive and non-sensitive election materials. Meanwhile, all non-sensitive materials have been dispatched to Ganye, the local government headquarters, while the sensitive materials will be dispatched on Friday, according to INEC’s head of voter education.

The caution came amid accusations and counter-accusations by PDP and APC of the use of relief materials meant for victims of the recent flood that ravaged parts of Adamawa as baits to woo voters. PDP organising secretary in the state, Alhaji Hamza Madagali, alleged that the “APC are using materials meant for flood victims to campaign; the materials are meant for people affected across party lines.” Reacting to the claim, Adamawa APC public relations officer, Alhaji Abdullahi Mohammed, denied that his party was using relief materials to campaign.

“We have not recorded any flood in Ganye LGA. So, no material was taken there in form of relief materials,” Mohammed stated.

ZAMFARA

In Zamfara, candidates for the election taking place in Kaura Namoda South constituency have stepped up campaigns, with APC, PDP and ADC confident of winning the election based on the calibre of their candidates. The seat became vacant following the demise of a lawmaker that won the election on the platform of the APC.

ANAMBRA

In Anambra, the election will be held in Anambra South senatorial district as the seat became vacant following the death of Senator Ifeanyi Ubah.

TARABA

In Taraba, residents urged INEC to ensure a free and credible exercise, even as Governor Agbu Kefas rallies other PDP stakeholders to outpace the APC team led by a former acting governor of the state, Senator Sani Abubakar, in the by-election in Karim I constituency. APC chieftains involved in the campaign train of the party also include Senator Abdulaziz Yari; ex-Governor Jolly Nyame; National Woman Leader of the party, Hajia Zainab Mustapha Saliu; Bianca Ojuku; Senator Idiat Oluranti; Senator Suwaiba Ahmed; Nkiruka Onyejeocha; Marafa Abba; Professor Sulaiman Ibrahim; Senator Orji Uzor Kalu and Senator Jimmy Kutawere.

ADC pulls out of Kano by-election

The ADC in Kano State said it would not participate in the by-election, in protest over how a similar exercise was handled in the past. According to the chairman of the party in the state, Alhaji Musa Haruna Doguwa, “re-run and by-elections in the past were characterised by violence, buying of votes and other acts inimical to peaceful election.”

The election coming up in the state is as a result of the death of an APC lawmaker, Honourable Alilu Kundila, on April 7, 2024. The INEC will also conduct a supplementary election for Kanyawa-Kunji state constituency, which was suspended on February 3, 2024 due to violence. Meanwhile, the chairman of the ruling New Nigeria People Party (NNPP) in the state, Alhaji Hashim Dugunrawa, assured that his party would humble the main opposition party, APC, at the poll.

Only five out of the existing 18 parties in the country are expected to participate in Saturday’s by-election in Kogi State, according to INEC. The parties fielding candidates are the Accord, ADC, APC, Allied Peoples Movement (APM), and the PDP. The state’s REC, Mr. Oliver Agundu, confirmed that the commission was fully ready for the election in Dekina-Okura state constituency. The poll follows the death of the former deputy speaker of the House of Assembly, Honourable Enema Paul, on December 14, 2024, during a prolonged illness.

Agundu, through the INEC’s Education Officer, Mr. Haruna Haliru, said the commission had held a meeting of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) to strategise on securing personnel and materials during and after the polls. He confirmed that all non-sensitive materials had been deployed to the local government, while sensitive materials were expected to arrive between Wednesday and Thursday. (Nigerian Tribune)