Opposition political parties have mounted fresh pressure on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), demanding an extension of the deadline for party primaries for the 2027 general election to the end of July 2026.
The call was contained in a communiqué issued after a high-level national summit of opposition parties held in Ibadan, Oyo State, where key players including the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) accused the electoral body of setting timelines designed to weaken them.
“We consider the recent guidelines released by INEC as obstacles, deliberately engineered to impose conditions and deadlines on the opposition parties,” the communiqué reads. “We therefore demand that INEC extends the deadline for primaries till the end of July, 2026.”
INEC had earlier fixed May 30, 2026, as the deadline for party primaries, a timeline the opposition insists is unfair and threatens a level playing field ahead of the 2027 elections.
The parties also escalated their attack on the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), accusing it of attempting to dismantle Nigeria’s multiparty democracy.
“That we shall resist all machinations by the APC to foist a one-party State on Nigeria and fight for the survival of multi-party democracy in our country,” the communiqué states.
They further rejected what they described as moves to impose President Bola Tinubu as the sole presidential candidate in 2027, vowing to field candidates and actively challenge the ruling party at the polls.
In a more direct confrontation, the opposition accused INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, of bias and called for his removal from the 2027 electoral process.
“That the INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Ojo Amupitan, having shown bias and partisanship in favour of the ruling APC, should not conduct the 2027 general elections as Nigerians across board have lost confidence in him and his capacity to guarantee the required neutrality to deliver free, fair, transparent and credible elections. His continuous stay in office is vexatious and capable of triggering wide spread crisis in our nation,” the communiqué reads.
The parties also urged the National Assembly to urgently review the Electoral Act 2026, arguing that certain provisions undermine the integrity of the electoral system and conflict with constitutional principles.
They concluded by calling for the immediate release of politicians allegedly detained or harassed over what they described as “bailable” offences, warning that such actions could further heat up the political climate ahead of 2027.
