The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it will not take a position on the court judgment voiding Atiku Abubakar’s 2027 presidential ticket on the African Democratic Congress (ADC) until it has studied the ruling, and that its commissioners will meet on the matter next week.
INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, made this known on Sunday, days after the Federal High Court in Abuja nullified the David Mark-led ADC leadership and the party’s nominations for the 2027 elections.
“We can’t take a position until we see the judgment ourselves,” Haruna said, adding that the commission would deliberate on the matter at its meeting next week. “We will have to meet over it.”
He said INEC would respect any order that may arise from an appeal by the Mark-led faction. “Obviously, we’ll have to obey that judgment,” he said, referring to a possible stay of execution.
Justice Peter Lifu delivered the judgment on Thursday in a suit filed by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former ADC deputy national chairman for the North-East. The ruling voided decisions taken under the Mark-led leadership, including the nomination of Atiku and his running mate, Rotimi Amaechi.
The ADC has since filed a notice of appeal and applied for a stay of execution. In a statement on Friday, the party’s Presidential Campaign Council, through its Director of Strategic Communication, Phrank Shaibu, urged INEC to “exercise restraint” and said the campaign would continue without interruption.
Filing an appeal or a stay application does not by itself suspend a judgment, and the application had not been determined at the time of the reports. INEC had listed Atiku and Amaechi on its presidential candidates list before the ruling, and the commission has said it is awaiting a certified true copy of the judgment.
The Mark-led ADC has rejected the judgment, arguing that it conflicts with an earlier ruling by Justice Musa Liman in a separate leadership case. INEC’s meeting next week is expected to decide how the commission treats the ADC’s candidates ahead of the 2027 polls.
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