By Ikechukwu Nnochiri
ABUJA — The Supreme Court, on Wednesday, reserved its judgment in an appeal the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) filed to challenge the nullification of portions of the Electoral Act 2026 by the Court of Appeal.
The Abuja Division of the appellate court had, on July 16, struck down sections 77(5), (6) and (7), as well as 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026, which regulate membership registers of political parties and the procedure for the nomination of candidates for the 2027 general elections.
The court, in a unanimous decision by a three-member panel, held that the sections were inconsistent with provisions of sections 221 and 222 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which give political parties the right to decide whom to sponsor in an election.
The judgment followed an appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/750/2026, which the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) lodged against the INEC.
The ZLP had gone to the appellate court to challenge the dismissal of a suit it filed to query the constitutionality of some provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to membership registers of political parties and the conduct of primary elections.
Section 77(5) of the Electoral Act stipulates that only persons whose names are contained in the register submitted to INEC not later than 21 days before the date fixed for primaries, congresses or conventions would be eligible to vote.
Sub-section (6) provides that a political party shall not use any other register for party primaries, congresses and conventions except the register submitted to the Commission.
Likewise, sub-section (7) provides that a political party that fails to submit its membership register within the stipulated time shall not be eligible to field a candidate for the election.
On the other hand, section 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 provides that the procedure for the nomination of candidates by political parties for the various elective positions shall be by direct primaries or consensus.
The appellate court, in a lead judgment delivered by Justice Eberechi Nyesom-Wike, found merit in the case the ZLP brought before it.
However, dissatisfied with the invalidation of sections of the Electoral Act 2026, the INEC took the matter before the Supreme Court.
At the resumed proceedings on Wednesday, all the parties adopted their final briefs of argument in the appeal marked SC/CR/495/2026.
While the electoral body urged the apex court to uphold the appeal and upturn the appellate court’s decision, the ZLP sought the dismissal of the appeal for want of merit.
A seven-man panel of the apex court, led by Justice Adamu Jauro, after listening to the parties, reserved the matter for judgment.
It held that the judgment date would be communicated to the parties.
It will be recalled that Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja had, on May 5, dismissed ZLP’s case as lacking in merit.
Not happy with the verdict, the political party approached the appellate court and asked it to determine, among others, whether the stated provisions of the Electoral Act are superior to the powers donated to political parties by the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
The party urged the appellate court to determine if the electoral law was not an attempt to usurp the right of political parties to decide how to conduct their internal affairs.
In its judgment, the appellate court noted that sections 177 and 182 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, already listed the qualifying and disqualifying factors for political parties and candidates in an election.
It held that no other condition contained in a subsidiary law could disqualify an individual already qualified by the Constitution.
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