The House of Representatives Committee on Electoral Matters has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to take action against candidates whose names are not contained in the membership registers of the political parties that nominated them.
According to Ireporter Online, the committee made the demand in a letter to INEC signed by its chairman, Bayo Balogun, following the Supreme Court’s recent decision on provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 dealing with party membership registers and candidate nomination.
The committee urged INEC to enforce Section 77 of the Electoral Act ahead of the 2027 general elections and audit the candidates submitted by political parties against the membership registers previously filed with the commission.
The Supreme Court, in a judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, restored Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act after setting aside an earlier Court of Appeal decision that had invalidated the provisions. The apex court held that the provisions were not inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution.
Balogun said INEC had previously expressed concerns over the interpretation and enforceability of Section 77 because of pending litigation surrounding the provisions.
He argued that the Supreme Court’s decision had removed the uncertainty and provided a basis for the commission to proceed with enforcement ahead of the 2027 elections.
The committee chairman called on INEC to verify the names of candidates submitted by political parties against the membership registers filed with the commission within the period prescribed by law.
Under Section 77 of the Electoral Act 2026, political parties are required to maintain membership registers and submit them to INEC within the stipulated timeframe. The law also restricts parties from using a different register for their primaries, congresses and conventions.
The committee said strict compliance with the provisions would help reduce disputes and litigation arising from alleged violations of statutory requirements during the nomination process.
However, the Supreme Court judgment has been interpreted as directing the statutory consequence primarily at a party’s eligibility to field candidates, rather than automatically disqualifying an individual candidate solely because of a membership-register issue.
The development comes as political parties prepare for the 2027 general elections, with the restored provisions placing renewed emphasis on party membership registers, primaries and candidate nomination procedures.
The committee’s request now puts the focus on how INEC will apply the restored provisions and whether candidates whose names do not appear on their parties’ submitted registers will face administrative consequences ahead of the elections.
