Jonathan Likely To Battle Atiku, Tinubu, Obi in 2027 as PDP Turaki Faction Takes Fresh Action
- The Turaki-led PDP interim committee submitted Goodluck Jonathan's presidential nomination and other candidates' names to INEC manually on Friday
- INEC refused to provide electronic submission access codes, saying it does not recognise the Turaki-led interim leadership of the PDP
- The committee warned INEC against publishing a different list, threatening fresh legal action over the deepening party leadership crisis
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The Kabiru Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee (INWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said on Friday, July 31, it had physically delivered former President Goodluck Jonathan's presidential nomination forms and the names of all its other candidates for the 2027 general elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), even as the electoral body continues to withhold official recognition from the faction.
The committee's National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, told journalists that the group turned to manual submission after INEC refused to issue the electronic access codes needed for the standard online process.
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"Notwithstanding INEC's refusal to provide us with the necessary access codes… we have successfully submitted, manually and in full compliance with the Electoral Act 2026, the list of candidates sponsored by the authentic Peoples Democratic Party," Ememobong said.
He confirmed that the submission covered Jonathan's presidential nomination alongside governorship, National Assembly, and state assembly candidates, and that INEC acknowledged receipt of the documents, Vanguard reported.
PDP Turaki camp warns INEC over candidate list
Ememobong put INEC on notice against publishing any alternative candidate list, saying the committee would exhaust "every constitutional, legal and democratic avenue" to prevent what he described as a plot to hijack the party.
He traced the crisis to a Supreme Court judgment that left the PDP without a recognised national leadership, saying the party's Board of Trustees and a requisitioned National Executive Committee meeting subsequently constituted the INWC.
He said INEC ignored formal notification of the interim body's formation and compelled the faction to seek court intervention.
On the Federal High Court ruling that went against them, Ememobong said the judgment "reads more like an appeal on the judgment of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal," adding that the party had already filed an appeal and intended to challenge alleged discrepancies between what was delivered in open court and the Certified True Copy of the ruling, Leadership reported.
The committee also levelled serious accusations at INEC, alleging that the commission withheld material facts in court proceedings and disregarded party congresses it had monitored directly.
"The Commission's actions have regrettably reinforced the growing public perception that it is no longer acting with the impartiality expected of the nation's electoral umpire," Ememobong said.
He went further, alleging that the PDP was the first victim of a coordinated effort to weaken opposition parties, saying the campaign had since spread across nearly all opposition groups in the country.
Ememobong called on Nigerians to defend multi-party democracy, warning that allowing electoral authoritarianism to go unchecked would damage the country's democratic foundations.
The PDP's internal leadership dispute has been the subject of ongoing litigation, with rival factions each claiming legitimacy to direct party affairs ahead of the 2027 election cycle.
PDP meets Jonathan ahead of 2027
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Kabiru Turaki PDP faction on Friday, July 24, visited its presidential candidate, former President Goodluck Jonathan, in Abuja.
Legit.ng reports that despite being the faction's presidential candidate, the ex-Nigerian leader has not publicly declared interest in running for the presidency in the 2027 elections.
Source: Legit.ng
