The Atiku Media Office has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of unlawfully granting access to its candidate nomination portal to a rival faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), alleging that the move is designed to undermine opposition parties ahead of the 2027 general election.
In a statement issued on Monday in Abuja, the media office claimed that the electoral commission’s action amounted to partisanship and could trigger avoidable leadership disputes within the opposition party.
The statement followed an announcement by Nafiu Bala Gombe, whom the Atiku Media Office described as a “pretender” to the ADC national chairmanship, that he had successfully uploaded the names of candidates for the 2027 elections through INEC’s candidate nomination portal on July 11.
According to the Atiku Media Office, access to the commission’s nomination portal is reserved for the duly recognised leadership of registered political parties in line with INEC’s guidelines for the 2027 polls.
It argued that the commission had already recognised the National Executive Committee led by former Senate President David Mark, insisting that any candidate list submitted by Gombe lacked legal validity.
“By granting access code to Bala Gombe, a pretender laying claims to the chairmanship of the ADC, though the law is not on his side and INEC has since validated the chairmanship of the Sen. David Mark-led executive, the electoral umpire is once again manifesting its partisanship,” the statement said.
The media office further questioned how two individuals could simultaneously claim recognition as national chairman of the same political party, maintaining that only the David Mark-led leadership enjoys legal recognition.
It also alleged that Gombe did not conduct valid party primaries as stipulated by the Constitution and the Electoral Act, stressing that only candidates produced through the recognised ADC leadership could lawfully participate in the elections.
Describing the granting of portal access to Gombe as unconstitutional and unlawful, the Atiku Media Office maintained that any parallel submission of candidates outside the recognised party structure was null and void.
It, therefore, called on INEC to publicly explain the circumstances under which access to the candidate nomination portal was granted to Gombe and urged the electoral body to refrain from actions capable of fuelling internal crises within opposition political parties.
INEC had yet to respond to the allegations as of the time of filing this report.
