Politics
Bayelsa, Kogi Polls: Court Dismisses APP’s Appeal Against INEC
The Abuja division of the Court of Appeal yesterday dismissed the appeal brought by the Action Peoples Party (APP) against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the exclusion of it’s candidates from participating in the 2019 governorship election in Bayelsa and Kogi States.
The appeal was dismissed just after the Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri, his deputy, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo and the Peoples Democratic Party had asked to be joined in the appeal as respondents.
Also yesterday the Kogi state governor, Yahaya Bello and his political platform, the All Progressive Congress (APC), had equally approached the court to be joined as respondents in the appeal.
However, when the matter was called up, counsel to the appellant, Obed Agu drew the attention of the court to a motion of withdrawal of the appeal filed on April 14.
Agu told the court that his client was desirous of withdrawing the appeal in accordance with order 11 Rule 1 of the Court of Appeal rules 2015.
His application was not opposed to by counsel to INEC, Alhassan Umar (SAN) and those representing parties seeking to be joined in the appeal.
Umar however asked the court for N3m cost against the appellant.
Other counsels representing parties seeking to be joined in the matter did not oppose the motion for withdrawal of the appeal but demanded that it be dismissed.
Delivering it’s ruling, a three-man panel of the court led by the acting President, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem dismissed the appeal in line with order 11 Rule 5 of the Court of Appeal rules.
The court however refused to award cost against the appellant on the ground that the only respondent on record, the INEC, did not file it’s response to the appeal.
Justice Mensem who delivered the unanimous ruling said the preliminary objection filed by INEC against the appeal cannot stand on its own without a respondents brief.
The appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/218/2020 is challenging the judgment of Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Abuja division of the Federal High Court delivered on February 21st, wherein she held that INEC was right to have excluded candidates of the party (APP) in the governorship election in Kogi and Bayelsa states in 2019.
Prof. Amupitan, stated this on Saturday during an interactive meeting with Commission officials and staff members from the six South-South states in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
The country’s chief electoral officer disclosed that Rivers State has 3,736,434 registered voters, followed by Delta State with 3,525,988 and Edo State with 2,865,263.
Other states in the region have the following registered voter figures:
– Akwa Ibom – 2,566,198.
– Cross River – 1,928,978.
– Bayelsa – 1,200,691.
The six states collectively have 15,823,550 registered voters, according to the figures presented by the INEC chairman.
Prof. Amupitan stressed that the Commission would pay closer attention to Rivers State to ensure that operational challenges do not prevent eligible voters from exercising their civic rights.
“With the 3,736,434 registered voters for Rivers State, the state leads the South-South. By this, the Commission will put more attention to what happens in Rivers State. It is your duty to ensure that no voter is disenfranchised because of operational failures,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has ruled out any possibility of postponing the 2027 general elections, declaring that preparations were already in top gear and the polls will hold as scheduled.
Prof. Amupitan, who addressed Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and other officials of the Commission in the South South geopolitical zone, said the Commission’s statutory timetable for the elections had been established and would not be altered under any circumstances.
According to him, INEC remained committed to conducting credible elections in strict compliance with the provisions of the law.
“Our statutory timeline is fixed. We will not change anything. The election must hold as scheduled,” the INEC chairman declared.
His remarks came amid claims by some political parties that the electoral commission was considering shifting the 2027 general elections.
Prof. Amupitan also disclosed that INEC had published the voters’ register online and at designated locations to allow eligible voters to scrutinise their details and request necessary corrections.
He said the Commission had received more than 5,000 claims relating to corrections, including errors in names and dates of birth, alongside over 600 objections.
According to him, the commission was addressing the complaints and objections to ensure the credibility and accuracy of the final voters’ register.
The INEC chairman announced that the final register of voters would be released on December 15, 2026.
He added that all outstanding issues would be resolved before the deadline.
The electoral chief further revealed that the Commission had initially considered conducting a comprehensive revalidation of the voters’ register following his assumption of office.
However, the proposal was eventually dropped after concerns were raised that the exercise would take place too close to the 2027 general elections.
He explained that the commission considered the timing and potential implications of the exercise before deciding against proceeding with it.
Prof. Amupitan expressed confidence in INEC’s ability to deliver peaceful, transparent and credible elections in 2027.
He said the Commission had continued to draw lessons from recent off-cycle governorship elections, particularly the Osun State governorship election, to strengthen its preparations and improve electoral operations.
The INEC chairman urged officials across the South-South region to demonstrate commitment, professionalism and efficiency in carrying out their responsibilities.
He maintained that the success of the 2027 general elections would depend significantly on the Commission’s preparedness and its ability to ensure that no eligible Nigerian is disenfranchised.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has received over 4,800 claims and about 600 objections following the publication of its preliminary voter register.
Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this in Abuja during a meeting with an ECOWAS Pre-Election Fact-Finding Mission delegation.
Prof. Amupitan, who confirmed the figures, noted that the claims—submitted at registration areas nationwide—primarily involve minor corrections, while ward-level objections were routed through Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs).
“?The national voter register currently stands at over 103 million registered citizens”, he said.
Prof. Amupitan assured the delegation that all complaints and discrepancies identified during the online and physical display phases will be resolved before the final voter register is officially certified on December 15, 2026.
?To test readiness ahead of the 2027 general election, INEC plans to conduct nationwide mock accreditation exercises in November. The tests will evaluate voter accreditation and simultaneous electronic result transmission across all 36 states.
Prof. Amupitan highlighted new technical protocols, including a safeguard requiring polling unit results to be authenticated locally before uploading to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) portal.
?”When I assumed office, the question was whether to bring in a different technology, but that was not an option given the timeline, so the Commission focused on improving the existing system,” Prof. Amupitan said.
?Addressing staff integrity, the INEC Chairman disclosed that the Commission secured approval for the Consolidated Election Management Body Salary Structure (CEMBSS) to enhance welfare and curb political inducements.
He reaffirmed the agency’s neutrality, stating that INEC “has no candidate and no political party.”
The ECOWAS delegation—led by former Sierra Leonean Vice-President Victor Bockarie Foh and former Speaker, Dr. Abbas Chernor Bundu—is conducting a pre-election assessment under the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance.
?In a separate development, INEC released the outcomes of its review into complaints following the Oct. 10 publication of final Governorship and State Assembly candidates lists.
According to the Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Mr Mohammed Kudu Haruna, the Commission evaluated petitions concerning omitted parties, unverified party register entries, and alleged multiple nominations.
Out of 69 governorship petitions submitted by 12 political parties across 26 states, 41 succeeded while 28 were dismissed.
For State Houses of Assembly elections, 25 out of 61 petitions across 11 States were upheld. Updated candidate lists reflecting these corrections have been published on the Commission’s official website.
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