Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has reviewed 171 requests from associations seeking registration as political parties.
In a statement issued after a meeting held in Abuja, the Commission revealed that 14 associations have met the requirements to proceed to the next stage of the registration process, while 157 did not qualify.
According to the National Commissioner and Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, the applications were assessed based on specific constitutional and legal criteria.
“Each request was assessed on the basis of its prima facie compliance with the provisions of Section 222 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), Section 79 (1, 2 and 4) of the Electoral Act 2022; and Clause 2 (i and ii) of the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties 2022,” Olumekun said.
He also confirmed that INEC would inform all the applicants of the Commission’s decision within 24 hours.
“The Commission shall officially communicate the decision arising from the meeting to all the associations within 24 hours,” he stated.
Olumekun further noted that the names of the 14 pre-qualified associations have been published on the INEC website and other official platforms for public awareness.
