JUST IN: ADC rejects revised INEC timetable ahead of 2027 elections

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has rejected the Independent National Electoral Commission’s updated 2026–2027 electoral timetable, saying it contains boobytraps that could aid President Bola Tinubu’s plot to be returned unopposed in 2027.

Specifically, the party has flagged the new compliance requirements under Sections 77 and 82 of the Electoral Act 2026, which unfairly burden opposition parties while giving undue advantage to the ruling party.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said the requirement for political parties to submit a comprehensive digital membership register by April 2, 2026 ahead of primaries scheduled between 23 April and 30 May 2026 creates a near impossible hurdle that could exclude other parties from fielding candidates.

The ADC contended that with this requirement, among others contained in the obnoxious Electoral Act 2026, the so-called reform has effectively become an instrument of exclusion to clear the field for President Tinubu.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) rejects the updated 2026–2027 electoral timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). What has been presented as a routine administrative schedule of the upcoming general elections, is in fact, a political instrument carefully structured to narrow democratic space and strengthen the hand of the incumbent administration ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Part of the statement read: “What makes this requirement of digital membership particularly insidious is that the ruling party had commenced the process of this registration since February 2025, long before it became a requirement of the law. This is not a product of foresight, but insider knowledge.

“They knew what was coming. They therefore had one whole year to carry out an exercise that they expect other political parties to execute in one month, during which they must collect, process and collate vast digital data and transmit same to INEC by the deadline under the threat of total exclusion. This is more or less a practical impossibility.

“Democratic competition is based on a level-playing field that does not give any advantage to the contestants. A system where one party takes advantage of incumbency to give itself a one-year head-start on a requirement that other parties only became aware of when it is almost too late is a rigged and corrupt system.

“We call on civil society, democratic stakeholders, and patriotic Nigerians across party lines to scrutinize this timetable and join us in demanding fairness, because no democracy can endure if the rules that govern it are written to suit pre-determined outcomes.”