The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to implement a Supreme Court ruling concerning party registers as preparations for the 2027 general elections gather pace.
INEC Chairman Prof. Joash O. Amupitan
• Tackles Atiku, Amaechi over criticism of Tinubu’s reforms
• Rules out return of petrol subsidy
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enforce a Supreme Court judgment on political parties’ membership registers, warning that parties that fail to comply with statutory requirements could be barred from fielding candidates in the 2027 general election.
The ruling party also tackled former vice president Atiku Abubakar, former Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, and other opposition leaders over their criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, accusing them of hypocrisy and challenging them to account for their records in government.
The APC made its position on the Supreme Court judgment known in a letter dated October 9, 2026, addressed to the INEC chairman, while its criticism of opposition leaders followed remarks by its National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, and National Secretary, Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Basiru, in Abuja.
The party also defended the administration’s infrastructure investments in Northern Nigeria, insisting that its policies were designed to promote national unity, strengthen the economy and improve citizens’ welfare.
In the letter to INEC, Yilwatda and Basiru urged the commission to implement the judgment delivered on September 24, 2026, in the case of INEC v. Zenith Labour Party, Suit No. SC/CV/495/2026.
The APC argued that the judgment affirmed the validity of Section 77 of the Electoral Act 2026, which prescribes requirements for submitting membership registers and determining eligibility to participate in party primaries, congresses and conventions.
According to the party, the Supreme Court set aside a Court of Appeal order that had nullified Section 77(5) to (7), Section 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 and Activity Serial Number Two of INEC’s revised timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 general election.
Section 77(4) of the Electoral Act 2026 requires political parties to submit their membership registers to INEC not later than 21 days before their primaries, congresses or conventions. The APC said Section 77(5) restricts participation in those internal elections to members whose names appear in the submitted register, while Section 77(6) prohibits the use of alternative registers for the purpose.
Citing page 24 of the judgment, the party said the Supreme Court explained that a political party that failed to submit its digital membership register within the prescribed period could be precluded from fielding candidates in the general election.
It also referred to pages 25 and 26 of the judgment, where the court reportedly emphasised that the provision was intended to promote internal party democracy through fair, transparent and verifiable primaries, congresses and conventions.
The APC further cited Section 228(a) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, which empowers the National Assembly to enact laws prescribing guidelines and rules to ensure internal democracy within political parties.
It also relied on the Supreme Court’s reference to Ardo v. Nyako (2014) 10 NWLR (Pt. 1416) 591 at 620, which addressed the National Assembly’s constitutional authority to regulate procedures for party primaries, congresses and conventions.
According to the APC, although political parties retain the power to nominate candidates for elections, the process must comply with procedures prescribed by law and cannot be left to the discretion of party officials.
The party also cited page 34 of the judgment, where the Supreme Court reportedly observed that INEC had given political parties sufficient time to submit their digital membership registers.
Invoking Section 287(1) of the Constitution, which provides for the enforcement of Supreme Court decisions throughout the federation, the APC argued that INEC was directly bound by the judgment because it participated in the litigation as the appellant.
It consequently asked the commission to verify whether political parties had submitted their digital membership registers within the statutory deadline and apply the consequences prescribed by Section 77(7) where non-compliance was established.
The party also urged INEC to recognise only members whose names appeared in duly submitted registers and prevent the use of alternative registers during party primaries, congresses and conventions.
The APC maintained that compliance was a statutory obligation rather than a matter of discretion, warning that failure to enforce the law could undermine internal party democracy, electoral transparency and the rule of law..
Meanwhile, Basiru and Yilwatda spoke in Abuja while receiving opposition politicians, including 12 House of Representatives and state House of Assembly candidates from the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), who defected to the ruling party.
The defectors, drawn from Sokoto, Kaduna, Jigawa, Kano and Plateau states, were led by Princess Asmau Aliyu. Prof. Murtala Yusuf represented the ADC group, while Mohammed Rabiu represented the NDC contingent from Kaduna State.
Basiru, flanked by Yilwatda and other members of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), questioned whether opposition leaders were genuinely concerned about Nigeria’s economic challenges or merely seeking to regain political power.
“Is it just about delivering for the Nigerian people or pursuing inordinate ambition?” he asked.
Taking a swipe at Amaechi over his reported criticism of the proposed seaport project in Ogun State, Basiru questioned why an infrastructure initiative expected to stimulate economic activity should be opposed on the grounds of alleged personal interests attributed to Tinubu.
“I heard a Rotimi Amaechi saying that we should not have done a seaport in Ogun State because we are only doing a seaport in Ogun State because the President wants to make money from it,” he said.
“The President could have as well pocketed the money without doing any seaport itself. How can you say that a developmental project, which is going to impact the economy, should not have been done because we want to politicise it?”
Basiru also challenged opposition politicians who had previously held public office to account for their records, citing the Ajaokuta Steel Company, Osogbo Steel Rolling Mills, Delta Steel Company and Nigerian Airways as examples of national assets whose fortunes, according to him, had deteriorated following privatisation exercises.
“The steel mills were sold at half value. Delta Steel was sold at half value, and the Ajaokuta Steel Mills are comatose. The Osogbo Steel Rolling Mills are comatose. Nigerian Airways is comatose,” he said.
He maintained that Nigerians should scrutinise the records of opposition figures before accepting their promises of a new Nigeria.
On petrol subsidy removal, Basiru ruled out a reversal of the policy, arguing that the country could not afford to return to a system that placed pressure on public finances.
“As the Minister of Petroleum has said, we are not going back to subsidy. It’s gone and gone forever,” he said.
Basiru, who said he experienced financial difficulties while serving as a commissioner in Osun State, recalled that the government had to borrow from the capital market to pay workers and finance development projects.
“At that time, we could not pay salary. We had to get into bad debt to pay salary. We could not pay pensioners. If we wanted to do developmental projects, we had to go and borrow money in the capital market,” he said.
He warned that reversing the reforms could undermine governments’ ability to meet their obligations and finance infrastructure.
“Will somebody, because of his inordinate ambition, reckless ambition, now want to get us back to the era where pensioners will be dying in a queue looking for what they will eat?” he asked.
The APC national secretary also defended the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), saying more than 1.4 million students had benefitted from the initiative.
He argued that student loans and monthly upkeep allowances of N20,000 could make a significant difference to students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
“For people who have stolen money to buy cars that they don’t need and assets they don’t need, N20,000 will not make sense. But children of vulnerable people, like some of us when we were in school, N20,000 is really a deal,” he said.
He added that education should not be assessed solely by its ability to secure paid employment for graduates, but also by its role in developing responsible citizens.
“Education is to create a rounded citizen that is able to contribute meaningfully to society,” he said.
On his part, Yilwatda defended Tinubu against accusations that his administration had neglected Northern Nigeria in its infrastructure spending, listing road, rail, gas and power projects, which he said would benefit the region.
He recalled Tinubu’s support for northern presidential candidates in previous election cycles, including Atiku in 2007, National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, in 2011 and former president Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 and 2019.
Yilwatda said Tinubu stood behind Buhari in 2019 and led reconciliation efforts to consolidate support for the former president’s re-election, arguing that his political history demonstrated a commitment to national unity and power rotation.
Responding to criticism that the administration’s Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway favoured the South at the expense of the North, the APC chairman cited the Abuja-Kaduna-Kano road, the Kano-Maiduguri corridor and projects linking Kano to Katsina, Daura and Zaria. He also mentioned road construction in Sokoto and Kebbi states.
“The coastal road is 700 kilometres,” he said, arguing that the length of the project should not be used to dismiss investments in other parts of the country.
He said the road projects, together with railway development and gas infrastructure, would improve transportation, strengthen trade and support agricultural production in the North.
Yilwatda also highlighted planned and ongoing rail connections involving Kano, Kaduna and Maradi, saying improved rail transport would expand access to seaports and create opportunities for businesses in landlocked neighbouring countries, including Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso and Cameroon.
He further cited compressed natural gas initiatives and electricity sector reforms as evidence of the administration’s investments in the region.
The APC chairman challenged opposition proposals to offer a N500-per-litre discount on petroleum products, arguing that such a policy would require substantial public expenditure and could undermine the government’s fiscal position.
He questioned the feasibility of supplying domestic refineries with sufficient crude oil at discounted rates, noting that a substantial proportion of Nigeria’s crude production belonged to joint-venture partners.
Yilwatda said the administration had inherited substantial financial obligations, including debts to power generation companies, gas suppliers, foreign airlines and investors whose funds had been trapped under the previous foreign exchange regime.
He claimed that the government had settled outstanding obligations running into trillions of naira, although he did not provide a detailed breakdown during the event.
He also alleged that the Aluminium Smelting Company of Nigeria, which he said cost about $3.5 billion to build, was sold for less than $130 million, while steel assets valued at more than $1.5 billion were disposed of for substantially lower amounts.
Yilwatda argued that the administration’s economic policies were intended to address inherited financial difficulties and redirect public resources towards capital projects.
He urged the defectors to mobilise support for Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general election, describing their decision to join the APC as a commitment to continuity and national development. He assured them that the party would accommodate new members and provide opportunities for them to participate in its activities.
