…Approves 36 of 69 petitions by parties over omitted candidates
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has cleared former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, and the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in Kano State, Aminu Abdulsalam Gwarzo, to contest the 2027 general elections, while rejecting the appeal by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Ladi Adebutu.
The decisions followed more than two weeks of uncertainty over the eligibility of several governorship and State House of Assembly candidates whose names were omitted from the list initially published by the commission.
A competent source at INEC disclosed that the commission received 69 petitions from political parties seeking a review of the omissions, out of which about 36 were successful.
The source, who spoke to Daily Trust after a meeting that lasted more than six hours on Thursday, said the commission had concluded its review but was awaiting final figures from its legal department.
The official confirmed that Pantami and Gwarzo had been cleared, although their participation remained subject to the outcomes of pending court cases.
“Yes, Pantami has been cleared,” the source said.
On Gwarzo, the official explained that the clearance could be affected by the eventual decision of the court handling the dispute over his candidacy.
“Because of the court case, the court may rule otherwise. So his approval is subject to whatever the court finally decides,” the source said.
The source, however, confirmed that Adebutu’s petition was unsuccessful.
“He did not succeed,” the official said.
INEC had on October 10 published the list of governorship and State House of Assembly candidates for the 2027 elections but withheld the names of some candidates over concerns surrounding their emergence and compliance with statutory requirements.
The affected candidates included individuals who had contested under other political parties before defecting to the platforms that nominated them, as well as those whose parties’ submission of membership registers to the commission was in question.
The commission subsequently gave affected parties and candidates 14 days, ending October 24, to submit petitions for reconsideration.
INEC’s position was based on the September 24, 2026, Supreme Court judgment affirming the constitutionality of Section 77(5) to (7) of the Electoral Act 2026, which makes the submission of party membership registers mandatory.
Gwarzo had approached the court to challenge the omission of his name and that of his running mate, Rabiu Mustapha, from the list of governorship candidates in Kano State.
In an originating summons dated October 20, 2026, he asked the court to declare their exclusion unlawful and compel INEC to recognise them as the NDC’s candidates.
Reacting to the commission’s decision, the spokesman for Gwarzo, Ibrahim Garba Shuaibu, said the development had strengthened the party’s political standing rather than weakened its chances in the forthcoming election.
He said the party was confident that it had complied with all electoral requirements and was therefore not surprised by the decision.
“We were not frightened because we followed all the laid-down procedures from party membership to the nomination process and submission of our candidate’s details,” he said.
Shuaibu argued that the controversy surrounding the initial omission had attracted public sympathy and increased the party’s support base.
“What the electoral commission intended as a setback has actually worked in our favour. It has increased our supporters, strengthened our popularity and made more people identify with us,” he said.
He added that the NDC would intensify its mobilisation and campaign activities across Kano State.
A political scientist, Dr Kabiru Sufi, said Gwarzo’s clearance would strengthen confidence in the democratic process and create room for a more competitive governorship election in Kano.
Sufi acknowledged that the uncertainty surrounding the candidate’s status had initially slowed the party’s preparations but expressed optimism that it could recover the lost ground.
“Yes, I think it did initially, but they had confidence that they would seek redress and they even went to court,” he said.
He added that the party still had time to resume its preparations and engage voters ahead of the election.
Gwarzo’s reinstatement is also expected to reshape political calculations in Kano, where his experience as a former deputy governor and established political network could strengthen the NDC’s challenge to the ruling APC.
Meanwhile, Pantami’s clearance has reopened the prospect of a governorship contest between the PDP and APC in Gombe State, following weeks of uncertainty over his emergence as the opposition party’s candidate.
A member of Pantami’s legal team and spokesman for the Pantamiya Movement, Barrister Ibrahim Attahir, welcomed the decision, saying the group had always believed that the rule of law would prevail.
He said the development did not come as a surprise because the group was confident that INEC would act in accordance with the law.
“INEC is a product of the law and headed by a professor of law, so we are not surprised that the commission would adhere to democratic tenets and the rule of law,” he said.
On the pending court cases, Attahir said the group remained confident in the judiciary.
However, the clearance has not ended the controversy surrounding Pantami’s candidacy.
A PDP governorship aspirant in Gombe State, Usman Aliyu Garry, vowed to continue challenging his emergence, insisting that the legal dispute over the party’s governorship ticket remained unresolved.
Garry questioned the basis on which INEC recognised Pantami despite the pending litigation, demanding that the commission explain the criteria used in arriving at its decision.
He maintained that he would pursue the case until the issues surrounding Pantami’s eligibility were resolved.
The PDP Publicity Secretary in Gombe State, Abdulkadir Ahmed Dukku, said he was not aware of INEC’s latest decision but promised to consult the party leadership for clarification.
In Ogun State, Adebutu’s rejection has left the PDP candidate’s exclusion unresolved.
The former senator representing Ogun Central, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, had earlier accused the APC in the state of seeking to weaken electoral competition through Adebutu’s omission.
Speaking during an interview with The Arena, an Abeokuta-based podcast, Obasanjo described the development as a threat to democracy, arguing that political opponents should be defeated through the ballot rather than exclusion from the electoral process.
She questioned why Adebutu’s name was missing from the list when other PDP candidates had reportedly followed the same membership registration procedures.
“What is it that Hon Ladi did differently from what we did? And when I asked that question, I have a scientific mind. The answer was, he did the exact same thing, right? That we all did. The next question is why is his name not on the list,” she said.
Efforts to obtain Adebutu’s reaction through his spokesman, Afolabi Orekoya, were unsuccessful as calls and a WhatsApp message sent to him were not answered.
INEC was also expected to issue a formal statement detailing the outcome of the review exercise.
As of press time, it was unclear whether the NDC governorship candidate in Kaduna State, Senator Danjuma Laah, and the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate in Benue State, Sebastine Hon, were among those cleared.
The commission’s latest decisions have reopened political calculations in Gombe and Kano while leaving the Ogun governorship contest facing further uncertainty, with pending judicial decisions expected to determine the final status of some candidates.
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