The faction of the New Nigeria Peoples Party led by Dr Boniface Aniebonam on Thursday blamed Nigeria’s electoral commission for delays in concluding screenings and fixing primaries for aspirants ahead of the 2027 elections. The party said it could mobilise supporters for protests against the Independent National Electoral Commission over what it described as repeated refusal to comply with court orders concerning the party’s leadership and logo.
National Secretary Comrade Ogini Olaposi said in a statement that the commission’s actions were frustrating the party’s preparations and could deny it full participation in the 2027 general elections.“We used all legal means via the courts to get the commission to comply with court orders and stop the unnecessary delays,” Olaposi said.
He said a meeting between the party leadership and INEC Chairman Prof Joash Amupitan on May 19 failed to resolve the dispute, adding that the commission had yet to comply with a court order directing it to upload the National Working Committee led by Agbo Major within 72 hours.
Olaposi accused the commission of disregarding judicial rulings, saying INEC had neither secured a stay of execution nor overturned the judgments through appeal.
He said a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja had ordered the commission to remove the logo associated with Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso’s Kwankwasiya Movement and restore the NNPP’s original symbol and colours, but alleged that INEC had failed to comply more than 60 days later.
The party also questioned why the commission continued to recognise the Kwankwasiya Movement within the NNPP despite claims that Kwankwaso and several associates had moved to another political platform.
Olaposi said the party’s right to protest was guaranteed under the constitution and warned that further delays could prevent the NNPP from participating in future off-cycle elections.He urged INEC to immediately comply with the court orders by restoring the party’s original logo and leadership structure on its portal.