Tension as INEC Withholds Access Code of Strong Opposition Party
- INEC issued access codes for candidate nominations to all political parties except NNPP as of Tuesday, June 30
- The NDC was granted access despite ongoing court proceedings, with INEC asserting no interference in legal matters
- Public reactions to the development varied, with some praising INEC while others questioned the influence of political figures
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The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reportedly issued access codes to almost all registered political parties that will allow them to upload the credentials of their candidates to the nomination portal. However, the only exempted political party was the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) as of Tuesday, June 30.
It was gathered that all the political parties, including the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), received their access codes from the electoral body, despite the subsisting court judgment involving the party.
Source: Facebook
According to Daily Trust, a senior official of the electoral body disclosed that the NDC was granted access after INEC took judicial notice of the appeal against the court ruling and its application for a stay of execution by the party
The official further disclosed that the decision of INEC was carried out without any prejudice to the determination of the matter. He explained that INEC considered the pending nature of the application and noted that applying for a stay of execution was not enough grounds to deny the NDC access to the portal for candidate nomination, while the suit remains before the court.
He made it known that virtually all registered political parties have been issued their access code from the electoral body. His statement reads:
“By the way, I’ve just confirmed that all but NNPP have collected their code.”
What is an access code?
The access code will allow the political parties to upload their candidates' particulars to the INEC Candidate Nomination Portal (ICNP), in line with the timetable of the electoral umpire for the 2027 elections.
The clarification came amid public interest in the decision of the electoral body to grant the NDC access to its portal, despite the recent court ruling that affected the party.
However, INEC maintained that the access code granted to the NDC did not in any way affect the outcome of the suit before the court.
Nigerians react as NNPP is denied access code
The report has started generating mixed reactions from Nigerians. Below are some of their comments:
Hon Josiah Ehuchie commended the electoral body:
"You are right, give all the opportunity to test their acceptance before the electorate!"
Source: Getty Images
Daniel Amos called on INEC to publish the credentials of the candidates:
"INEC should display the particulars of all candidates to the public."
Ibrahim Umar alleged that the decision was influenced by the former governor of the party:
"The handiwork of the only governor who won under the same platform."
Aminu Dalhat said there was no NNPP without Kwankwaso:
"Kwankwaso was NNPP and without kwankwaso there is no NNPP."
Read more reactions on Facebook as INEC grants access codes to all political parties except NNPP.
Atiku criticises court decision on NDC
Legit.ng earlier reported that Atiku Abubakar accused President Bola Tinubu of undermining democracy through plans to deregister the NDC.
The former ADC 2027 presidential candidate issued a warning about a potential shift towards a one-party state ahead of the 2027 elections.
Atiku, who was a former vice president of Nigeria, stressed that diminishing political competition threatens Nigeria's national stability and governance.
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
