JUST IN: APC chides opposition parties over failure to meet INEC’s deadline
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has criticised opposition parties for failing to meet the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) deadline for submitting names of candidates for the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.
In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, the ruling party expressed satisfaction with its successful submission of candidates’ details ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Morka noted that the APC met INEC’s requirements despite fielding a significantly larger number of candidates across various elective offices compared to the opposition.
“At the request of opposition political parties that had failed to meet the July 11 deadline, INEC granted an extension to July 14, 2026.
“While INEC acted within its statutory powers and administrative discretion in extending the deadline, it is noteworthy that the extension was necessitated by the opposition parties’ failure to manage their internal processes. This is despite having fewer candidates to coordinate than the APC,” Morka said.
Morka described the opposition’s failure as a reflection of their “chronic inherent weakness” and questioned their readiness to govern.
“Political parties that cannot efficiently conclude their own internal nomination processes cannot possibly be trusted by Nigerians to possess the competence, discipline, or readiness to govern our great nation or its subnational governments,” Morka said.
He also highlighted what he called the opposition’s hypocrisy, noting that parties which often accuse the APC of controlling INEC still sought and received an extension from the same electoral body.
“It is starkly ironic that the same opposition parties have repeatedly peddled false, malicious and unfounded claims that the APC controls and dictates INEC’s decisions. Yet, when they failed to meet the submission deadline, they shamelessly turned to INEC for respite and were granted an extension.
“And the same APC that would have benefited if INEC had stood firm on its original deadline kept its distance, having already met the deadline. This once again underscores the opposition’s hypocrisy and their true character as peddlers of fake news and merchants of blackmail,” he said.
Morka emphasised that the APC’s successful upload of its presidential, vice-presidential, senatorial, and House of Representatives candidates on the INEC portal demonstrates its superior organisational capacity, discipline, and commitment to due process.
“As we conclude this important phase of the electoral process, we call on all party leaders, stakeholders, members, and supporters to turn their full attention to the task ahead.
“We must remain focused, strengthen our structures at all levels, increase awareness of the massive achievements under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, deepen grassroots mobilisation, and prepare for a vigorous, issue-based campaign that will earn our great party a renewed mandate in the 2027 general elections,” he added.
