The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has insisted that that any primary election that was conducted beyond the May 30 deadline remains invalid, unless a higher court overturns an earlier Federal High Court judgment on the matter.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, stated this in an interview with The Punch.
He advised that political parties would have to continue to comply with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 pending the determination of the commission’s appeal before the Court of Appeal.
Haruna stated: “Obviously, for now, any primary held outside INEC’s May 30 deadline will be invalid unless the Court of Appeal overturns the Federal High Court judgment in INEC’s appeal against the ruling that the timetable breached the Electoral Act 2026 in some of its provisions.
“In other words, for now, the political parties are better advised to be guided by the existing Act.”
The INEC commissioner’s position follows the ongoing legal dispute over the commission’s timetable for party primaries and candidate nominations ahead of the 2027 general election.
