There appears to be a simmering cold war between the Coalition of Political Leaders, which includes former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Kaduna State Governor Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The spokesman of the group, Salihu Lukman, in a press statement on Monday, accused INEC of deliberately frustrating its efforts to register an alternative political platform.
Lukman maintained that efforts by individual leaders in the forum to seek registration of new political parties have become a tall order, alleging that the electoral umpire is being teleguided by external forces.
“The question of negotiating the political party is the most difficult challenge. This is an area that many members of the coalition have been engaging in different ways for more than a year now. Perhaps, it is important to highlight that there are many groups, including some members of the coalition, who have filed applications to register political parties. For reasons best known to INEC, these applications are being frustrated. The only conclusion that can be reached in the circumstances is that INEC has decided that it will not register new parties,” Lukman said.
However, Rotimi Oyekanmi, Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, faulted the claims made by the Coalition of Political Leaders.
Speaking with Nigerian Tribune in a telephone interview, Oyekanmi maintained that there are laid-down processes to be followed before an association can be registered as a political party.
“It’s not true. The Commission will not frustrate any association seeking registration as a political party.
“We operate a transparent process. There are conditions to be fulfilled, and there is an application procedure to be followed, as contained in the Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties (2022).
“There are documents to be submitted and verified, and there are different stages of an application. An applicant needs to comply with all the requirements and must also submit genuine documents.
“If there are issues during the application process, the Commission will immediately inform the applicant to rectify such areas.”
Lukman also alleged that efforts to seek an alternative within certain existing political parties have met a brick wall, as the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Presidency have instigated crises in political parties known to have engaged in discussions with the new platform.
“To make matters worse, many of the existing registered parties that did not meet the electoral threshold of winning any seat in the last general elections face the threat of deregistration. Given this unpleasant reality, members of the coalition opened negotiations with some of the existing parties that have met the electoral threshold.
“Interestingly, somehow, some of the prospective parties being negotiated with are being remotely pushed into crisis mode, just like the PDP, Labour Party, and NNPP, which have been entangled in existential problems.
“It is almost a clear case of destroying the legal basis for any party to qualify to field candidates for 2027 other than the ruling APC.
“This is quite unfortunate, especially under a government that claims to be progressive. It is even more troubling that this is happening during the tenure of a leader – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu – who has unarguably been at the forefront of Nigeria’s democratic struggle.
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“The way Nigeria’s democratic space is shrinking is alarming and could only be imagined under a military government. The determination and resilience of Nigerians are being put to the test under the current APC-led government.
“The leaders of the coalition are committed to providing the necessary leadership to rescue Nigerian democracy. We must appeal to all patriotic Nigerians to recognize the urgency of the situation facing the country. We don’t have the luxury of waiting until 2027, only to realize that Nigerians have been legally knocked out of the political process.
“Equally worrisome is the increasing threat to the rule of law, which is undermining the democratic development of the country. All patriotic Nigerians must urge members of the judicial arm of government to come to the rescue of Nigerian democracy by demonstrating their independence and upholding the sanctity of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended).
“We are confident that Nigerian democracy can be rescued. Rescuing Nigerian democracy is fundamentally about producing a political party that can guarantee and facilitate competitive political contests in the country.
“We recognize and respect all the interests, criticisms, and reservations expressed by Nigerians, including those of political leaders who are potential members of the coalition. Our strong appeal to all political leaders and Nigerians, in general, is that we must not allow personal interests to undermine our collective ability to contribute to Nigeria’s democratic development.”
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