INEC To Publish Nominated Candidates' List In March

INEC To Publish Nominated Candidates' List In March

Nigeria's Electoral Commission, INEC has said that it would publish lists of nominated candidates for April general elections between March 2 and March 16 .

Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega, Mr Kayode Idowu said on Friday in Abuja that the timeline was in accordance with the timetable and schedule for the polls issued by the commission.

Idowu told newsmen that candidates for elections to the office of governors and deputy governor and those of state Houses of Assembly had up to February 28 to withdraw their candidature.

Controversies

It will be recalled that INEC received several petitions from aggrieved party members complaining that they won the primary elections but their parties sent other people's names to the Commission.

Some candidates have also complained to the commission that they did not withdraw from the elections but their political parties illegally substituted their names, thus denying the signatures purportedly made by them.

Idowu said the Commission was investigating the allegations and would inform the political parties of its findings with regard to the fact that INEC monitored the primaries conducted by political parties.

Court orders pose challenges

The INEC chairman on Monday told newsmen that the greatest challenge facing the nomination process was the alarming number of court orders.

Several ex-parte orders were served on the Commission restraining it from accepting and recognising some candidates nominated by their political parties.

"There are more than 150 pre-election cases filed nationwide against the Commission,'' Jega said.

NAN/Williams