WorldStage– Two Nigeria’s opposition parties, African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) have welcomed the ruling of a Federal High Court in Abuja on the deadline for party primaries, among others.
In a statement issued in Abuja by ADC’s National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said it viewed the ruling as vindication of its objections to key aspects of the electoral body’s guidelines at the time they were issued.
The party also recalled its specific objections to the strict timelines on membership registration as well as the conduct of party primaries.
“The decision of the court on these issues, including those that directly contradict the constitution, is therefore a welcome vindication of our position,” it said.
ADC said that the ruling, which removed the impediment placed by the guidelines on politicians who wished to seek alternative platforms to contest elections, was a positive development that would promote freedom of association.
“We believed at the time that that particular restriction was designed to prevent people from leaving the ruling party, APC.
“Now that the court has ruled against it, we are sure that, in the coming days, we will witness a mass exodus from the ruling party,” the party added.
PRP on its part welcomed the Federal High Court judgment nullifying certain guidelines issued by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The party, in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Muhammed Ishaq, described the ruling as a boost to democratic culture and internal party decision-making.
Ishaq said that the party was carefully studying the implications of the judgment.
The Federal High Court in Abuja had, on Thursday, voided the 2027 election timetable issued by INEC.
The Presiding Judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, in a judgment delivered in a suit brought by Youth Progressive Party, held that INEC’s action imposed restrictive timeframes on political parties for the conduct of primaries and other pre-election activities.
This, the judge said, was contrary to the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2026.
He held that INEC lacked the statutory power to fix or prescribe the timeframe within which political parties must conduct their primaries for the nomination of candidates for the 2027 general elections.
In its reaction, PRP noted that on the surface, the ruling restored critical responsibilities to political parties which, it said, had been usurped by INEC.
The party said the judgment would widen the scope of decision-making within political parties and remove what it described as unhealthy regimentation of party activities.
“Our party is studying this judgment very carefully. On the face of it, it promotes the growth and development of our democratic culture by restoring critical responsibilities to political parties, which INEC had usurped,” it said.
PRP, however, expressed concern that challenges could arise from the ruling, particularly if INEC decided to appeal the judgment, but expressed hope that patriotic Nigerians and influential stakeholders would prevail on the commission to refrain from such action.
According to the statement, other political parties are also expected to explore opportunities provided by the judgment to strengthen their membership base and improve the quality of their candidates.
The party called on well-meaning and patriotic Nigerians to join the party in its quest to rescue the country from what it described as bad governance.
