₦airaland Forum

Political parties risk being disqualified from fielding candidates in the 2027 general election if they fail to comply with section 77 of the Electoral Act 2026.

On February 18, President Bola Tinubu signed the Electoral Act amendment bill into law after it was passed by the national assembly.

The new law contains provisions that opposition parties have fiercely opposed, describing them as “obnoxious”.

Section 77 (2) of the law mandates political parties to submit a comprehensive digital membership register to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at least 21 days before their primaries.

Such a register must contain name, sex, date of birth, address, state, local government, ward, polling unit, national identity number and photograph of members in both hard and soft copies.

Section 77 (5) further states that only members whose names are contained in the register shall be eligible to vote and be voted for in party primaries, congresses and conventions.

According to section 77(7), a party that fails to submit the membership register within the stipulated time “shall not be eligible to field a candidate”.

KEY DATES IN INEC TIMETABLE

On Thursday, the electoral umpire released the reviewed timetable, fixing January 16, 2027, as the new date for the presidential and national assembly elections.

The commission also scheduled February 6, 2027, for the governorship and state houses of assembly polls.

INEC directed political parties to comply with section 77(2) of the law by submitting their membership registers by April 21 and conducting their primaries between April 23 and May 30.

The electoral body had earlier fixed February 20, 2027, for the presidential and national assembly elections and March 6, 2027, for the governorship and state houses of assembly polls, but reviewed the timetable after the repeal of the Electoral Act, 2022, and the enactment of the Electoral Act, 2026.

‘DESIGNED TO EXCLUDE OPPOSITION FROM 2027 POLL’

Opposition parties, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC) have rejected section 77 of the law and the INEC timetable, saying it is aimed at narrowing democratic space ahead of the 2027 elections.

In a statement on Friday, Bolaji Abdullahi, ADC spokesperson, described section 77 of the law as a “deliberately constructed barrier” capable of shutting opposition parties out of the electoral process.

Abdullahi said the All Progressives Congress (APC) had commenced the compilation of its digital membership register as far back as February 2025 — nearly a year before the provision became law.

“This is not a product of foresight, but insider knowledge,” he said.

“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 the same to INEC by the deadline under the threat of total exclusion.”

The ADC spokesperson said it is a “practical impossibility” for opposition parties to gather, process and transmit vast amounts of members’ data within the stipulated timeframe.

In a separate statement, Ose Anenih, a former chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said opposition parties are “constrained” to comply with the requirements of the law.

Anenih added that there is a “real possibility that only 1 or 2 parties will field candidates in 2027”.

Richtaiwo:
INEC has officially ordered membership registration, yet some clowns are still running around like headless chickens, busy pricing groundnuts.

And mark my words, the moment the commission dares sanction any misbehaving party, these same characters will flood the media waves, screaming “Tinubu!” with all the subtlety of donkeys at a karaoke contest.

helinues:
The irony of the opposition. They want e transmission of election results but same them can't organize digital membership.

They are not even interested in practicing what they are preaching.

The hypocrites dem

Ofunaofu:
Which is more ironical: an opposition party struggling with internal digital membership, or the ruling party, the APC, proudly flaunting a so-called digital membership register while vehemently rejecting mandatory electronic transmission of election results?

If digital systems are reliable enough for counting party members, why do they suddenly become dangerous when it’s time to transmit votes?

The real question is simple: why trust digital data for party politics but not for the people’s mandate

helinues:
On the other thread, you run away when I asked you to present one single thread you created about anything related to election process.

Election is not a day event but a process. If the opposition are really serious about e transmission of election results, then the senators would have debated it 2 years after the election as even after being passed, it will still required some modification which will take time.

Are you people in the opposition just waking up from the coma to be discussing about the same e transmission of election results when the election is just a year without considering the logistics part?

Why should the opposition insisting of e transmission of election results still be struggling to registered their members digitally? Please make it sensible and logically to me

Ofunaofu:
So why is the APC, the party you support, a party that claims to have a digital membership register, afraid of mandatory electronic transmission of election results?

Make it make sense for every Nairalander reading this!

helinues:
If you see my comments next time, just ignore it as you are not interested in engaging others logically or intellectually

Ofunaofu:
Everything seems carefully designed, including the refusal to make electronic transmission of election results mandatory, all to ensure Tinubu stands unchallenged in 2027.

When El-Rufai warned that Tinubu was on a path to becoming Nigeria’s Paul Biya, many laughed it off as theatrics. With the pace of recent moves, it no longer sounds like drama, it sounds like foresight.

Ofunaofu:
Which is more ironical: an opposition party struggling with internal digital membership, or the ruling party, the APC, proudly flaunting a so-called digital membership register while vehemently rejecting mandatory electronic transmission of election results?

If digital systems are reliable enough for counting party members, why do they suddenly become dangerous when it’s time to transmit votes?

The real question is simple: why trust digital data for party politics but not for the people’s mandate

Ofunaofu:
Which is more ironical: an opposition party struggling with internal digital membership, or the ruling party, the APC, proudly flaunting a so-called digital membership register while vehemently rejecting mandatory electronic transmission of election results?

If digital systems are reliable enough for counting party members, why do they suddenly become dangerous when it’s time to transmit votes?

The real question is simple: why trust digital data for party politics but not for the people’s mandate

donleo92:
Which one come be digital membership again

This INEC just dey do the more you look the less you see..

When them start to they write the numbers, we will all be shocking

Richtaiwo:
INEC has officially ordered membership registration, yet some clowns are still running around like headless chickens, busy pricing groundnuts.

And mark my words, the moment the commission dares sanction any misbehaving party, these same characters will flood the media waves, screaming “Tinubu!” with all the subtlety of donkeys at a karaoke contest.

Richtaiwo:
INEC has officially ordered membership registration, yet some clowns are still running around like headless chickens, busy pricing groundnuts.

And mark my words, the moment the commission dares sanction any misbehaving party, these same characters will flood the media waves, screaming “Tinubu!” with all the subtlety of donkeys at a karaoke contest.

Ofunaofu:
Everything seems carefully designed, including the refusal to make electronic transmission of election results mandatory, all to ensure Tinubu stands unchallenged in 2027.

When El-Rufai warned that Tinubu was on a path to becoming Nigeria’s Paul Biya, many laughed it off as theatrics. With the pace of recent moves, it no longer sounds like drama, it sounds like foresight.

helinues:
Bro, no be same opposition insisting on e transmission of election results be this? Why are they struggling to registered their members digitally?

Richtaiwo:
INEC has officially ordered membership registration, yet some clowns are still running around like headless chickens, busy pricing groundnuts.

And mark my words, the moment the commission dares sanction any misbehaving party, these same characters will flood the media waves, screaming “Tinubu!” with all the subtlety of donkeys at a karaoke contest.

SlavaUkraini:
https://www.thecable.ng/political-parties-risk-disqualification-from-2027-poll-over-digital-membership-register/

Mrexcell:
You guys are just been clever by half they didn't reject the digital registration but they are only complaining of the short one month time frame to do it.

Ofunaofu:
Everything seems carefully designed, including the refusal to make electronic transmission of election results mandatory, all to ensure Tinubu stands unchallenged in 2027.

When El-Rufai warned that Tinubu was on a path to becoming Nigeria’s Paul Biya, many laughed it off as theatrics. With the pace of recent moves, it no longer sounds like drama, it sounds like foresight.

benardtotti:
The same ADC that was proudly announcing how their website crashed last year cos many Nigerians were registering online so why are they suddenly complaining of digital registration of members.

Mrexcell:
You guys are just been clever by half they didn't reject the digital registration but they are only complaining of the short one month time frame to do it.

benardtotti:
The same ADC that was proudly announcing how their website crashed last year cos many Nigerians were registering online so why are they suddenly complaining of digital registration of members.