Court of Appeal backs INEC's guidelines for 2027 elections

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has backed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the rules for the 2027 general election. This decision came on Thursday. The court threw out an earlier judgement from the Federal High Court that had cancelled part of these guidelines.

The appellate court rejected the Federal High Court's decision made on 20 May. This earlier ruling had stopped INEC from implementing its guidelines for the upcoming elections.

According to PREMIUM TIMES, the Federal High Court's judgement removed important parts of INEC's Revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2027 General Election. The lower court had cancelled the dates for primary elections and other activities related to political parties.

This ruling changed the schedules for political parties’ primary elections. It also affected the timelines for political parties to nominate, withdraw, and update candidates’ details. INEC's final list of candidates for the 2027 elections was also impacted. The primary election phase for the 2027 elections has already passed.

Justice Adebukola Banjoko delivered the lead judgement on Thursday. She stated that the trial court made a mistake by invalidating INEC’s administrative powers. Justice Okon Abang read the judgement on her behalf.

Justice Banjoko said, "The law gives INEC the power to conduct elections in the country." The court decided that the Youth Party (YP), which brought the case against INEC, did not have the legal right to do so.

The court added that there was no evidence showing that INEC was blocked from holding its primaries. "The respondent can only invoke the powers of the court where there are heavy threats to its participation in the election," the court said.

“Where INEC acts within its power, the courts cannot get involved. The trial court’s decisions were wrongly granted and are hereby set aside,” the court ruled.

Justice Banjoko pointed out that the Youth Party did not explain how the guidelines impacted them or their members in holding their primary elections for the 2027 polls. A panel of three justices agreed that the Federal High Court made a mistake and caused an unjust situation by cancelling the guidelines, claiming they violated some parts of the Electoral Act.

INEC appealed against the Federal High Court's decision. It argued that the lower court made a legal error. INEC claimed the court did not address the issue of jurisdiction, saying the case was hypothetical and academic, which denied them a fair hearing.

Through their lead lawyer, Alex Izinyon, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, INEC asked the appellate court to overturn the lower court's ruling. The Youth Party had earlier challenged INEC’s guideline that required political parties to submit their membership lists and databases by May 10. This was a requirement for taking part in the 2027 elections.

The court ruled that INEC could not legally shorten the timeline set by Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, for submitting party membership records and candidates’ details. Displeased with this ruling, INEC filed an appeal on 25 May, asking the appellate court to cancel the Federal High Court's judgement.

INEC argued that the lower court erred by not deciding that the case was hypothetical and academic. They also said the proceedings denied them a fair hearing. INEC further claimed that the trial court’s ruling did not match the evidence presented and urged the Court of Appeal to allow their appeal, set aside the judgement, and dismiss the case. The electoral body insisted that the Youth Party did not have the legal right to bring or continue the case, calling it academic.