Political parties in the country have 91 days (May 30) to conduct and finalise primaries that will produce candidates following the release of a revised timetable for the 2027 elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission. The Punch reports.
INEC on Thursday released the revised timetable for the 2027 general elections.
With the new arrangement, the Presidential and National Assembly elections will now take place on January 16, while the governorship and state assembly elections will be held on February 6.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Malam Mohammed Haruna, said the commission approved a revised timetable and schedule of activities following changes in the electoral law.
In the revised timetable, INEC said the conduct of party primaries, including resolution of disputes arising from primaries, will commence on April 23, 2026 and end on May 30, 2026.
According to the Electoral Act 2026, political parties are to submit their digital membership register to INEC at least 21 days to any primary, congress, or convention as non-compliance will result in disqualification from fielding candidates.
Opposition races against time, kicks against timetable
Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the factional National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Ini Ememobong, said the party was studying the timetable to enable it to find ways to meet up with the deadlines.
“There is no doubt that INEC has put opposition parties under unnecessary pressure with the new timetable and this will in turn give the APC undue advantage.
“We are studying the timetable to ensure that we do everything within our power to meet up with all the activities ahead of the deadline,” Ememobong said.
But the National Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress, Bolaji Abdullahi accused INEC of setting boobytraps for the opposition to aid President Bola Tinubu’s plot to be returned unopposed in 2027.
Abdullahi said with the revised timetable, opposition parties might fail to meet up with INEC deadlines and might be unable to produce candidates for the election.
“They (INEC) just want to coronate Asiwaju (Tinubu); it is as simple as that. We have reviewed the new INEC timetable and we know that it is designed to coronate Asiwaju.
“The new timetable is part of the self-perpetuation plan because we know that there is no way the opposition political parties can meet up with any of these deadlines.
“We are expected to complete and produce a digital membership registrar by the end of March. We are to conduct our congresses between March and April. By the end of April, we must have our candidates, but how do we achieve all that? And these candidates must be produced through direct primaries which means that we must organise elections and in-between we must do our congresses, how does this make sense? How is that possible?
“What INEC has done with this timetable and these deadlines is to create a situation that will make it impossible for the opposition parties to contest in the election in 2027 and it is unacceptable,” Abdullahi said.
He further said the requirement for political parties to submit a comprehensive digital membership register by April 2 ahead of primaries scheduled between 23 April and 30 May 2026 creates a near impossible hurdle that could exclude other parties from fielding candidates.
“The ADC has joined other opposition political parties to reject the corrupted Electoral Act 2026. This INEC timetable, based on the said law, therefore stands equally rejected for the same reason that, put together, they appear designed to serve President Tinubu’s automatic self-succession project,” Abdullahi added.
Also reacting, the New Nigeria Peoples Party lamented that the revised timetable had put opposition parties at a disadvantaged position.
Speaking with Saturday PUNCH, the National Publicity Secretary of NNPP, Dipo Johnson described the revised timetable as an attempt by Tinubu and INEC to deny the opposition parties the opportunity to adequately prepare for the election.
“The opposition is at great disadvantage with the new INEC timetable and deadlines. It has put the opposition in a disadvantaged position.
“The APC knows very well that they only have one candidate for the presidential position. That is why they are more than eager to do this, hoping that it will negatively affect the preparedness of the smaller parties or the opposition parties.
“Illegally, I believe they have removed indirect primaries; this is an overreach. It is an overreach for them to put their hands in the parties and say you have to do it this way knowing fully well that it might be difficult for parties to reach consensus and it will be too costly for a majority of parties to have direct primaries everywhere in the country at the same time.
“This is an obvious further attempt to disrupt the preparedness of the opposition. No one is fooled by what they have done. They can continue to say all sorts of things but we are rejecting the new timetable,” Johnson said.
Also, a former presidential candidate, Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, rejected the adjusted schedule, describing it as an overreach of INEC’s powers.
According to him, the electoral body does not possess the constitutional authority to dictate when political parties should conduct their primaries beyond ensuring compliance with statutory deadlines for submission of candidates.
“It’s not the business of INEC to dictate to parties when they should conduct nominations of candidates for elections.
“INEC is not a headmaster that can impose what it wants on political parties. As long as parties comply with the Electoral Act regarding submission timelines, they have the right to determine when to hold their primaries.
“This shows that Amupitan cannot be trusted. It’s either he resigns or Nigerians will embark on mass action to force him out. He should not be allowed to stay a day longer in that office,” he said.
Hashim alleged that the decision to move party primaries to an earlier date was a calculated attempt to weaken opposition parties currently grappling with internal disputes and court cases.
Seek legal redress or boycott polls – APC
Meanwhile the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Ajibola Basiru, has dismissed the opposition’s criticisms of the 2027 election timetable, describing their objections as misplaced and politically motivated.
Speaking to Saturday PUNCH on Friday in reaction to calls for a review of the schedule, Basiru said the timetable was issued strictly in line with the existing Electoral Act and does not warrant the outcry from opposition figures.
“They are funny fellows. The timetable was issued in accordance with the existing electoral law recently passed,” he said.
According to him, the opposition’s reaction reflects a lack of preparedness ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He advised aggrieved parties to seek redress through legal channels rather than public complaints.
“Their lamentation only shows their lack of preparedness and tardiness. So, they want to set a timetable for themselves for the election they want to participate in?” Basiru queried.
“If they feel so strongly that anything untoward has occurred, they could either challenge the timetable in a law court or politically decide to boycott the elections,” he added.
Opposition entitled to their opinions –– INEC
Reacting, the INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, said opposition parties had the right to criticise the election timetable.
Haruna spoke during the Channels Television programme Politics Today monitored by Saturday PUNCH on Friday.
He affirmed that the commission worked with the time available based on the Electoral Act.
He said, “I am not an IT expert but with the little I know, there’s no difficulty in doing that (registering their members within the stipulated time). They are entitled to their opinion. It is the law of the land. INEC does not have the pleasure of rejecting any law. We have to be guided by it.
“We need to work within what the law says. It is not our fault, it is what the law prescribes, and we have to abide.
“For the opposition parties, the question is possible. They might not be the majority but they have influence. They should have anticipated it. They have members in the House and they should have done it in the way they would have provided a level playing ground for everybody,” he said.
Speaking further, Haruna expressed concerns over the funds to run the elections, saying the commission’s budget for 2026 had yet to be approved.
“We are bothered by tight schedules because the budget has not been approved. For our money to be released, it is six months and that’s tough. A lot of things we require are not available officially. The printing of our ballot papers takes time,” he said.
South-South ADC endorses Amaechi
Meanwhile, the South-South zone of the African Democratic Congress,led by Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has endorsed former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, for the ADC presidential ticket for the 2027 election.
Speaking on Friday during Amaechi’s visit to the group of regional leaders, Odigie-Oyegun disclosed that the former Rivers governor had formally informed them of his intention to contest the presidency.
“In the process, we are glad that our son, His Excellency, Chibuike Amaechi, took advantage of this meeting to brief us formally of his intention to run for the presidency of our great nation,” Odigie-Oyegun said.
Commending Amaechi, he said, “We were very pleased to thank him for the respect he has for the leaders of the zone; for not letting loose in his zone, setting up his own personal structure, by ensuring, like any good son, that he tells his people what he has in mind before he embarks on it.
“We were pleased, and I can report that a unanimous decision was taken to give him all the support that he needs in pursuit of his ambition,” Odigie-Oyegun stated.
He added that members of the ADC remained conscious of the limited time before the elections and were committed to their political objectives.
Punch