INEC opens NDC nomination portal again, says Dickson

The Independent National Electoral Commission has given the Nigeria Democratic Congress access to its nomination portal. This move allows the party to upload the names of its National Leader, Senator Seriake Dickson, and presidential candidate, Peter Obi. This comes despite the legal dispute over the party’s status.

Dickson shared this update on his X account on Tuesday.

He called it a positive development after the party filed an appeal and a request for a stay of execution against a Federal High Court ruling from last week in Lokoja.

He mentioned that both the appeal and the request have been sent to the electoral commission along with a letter urging them to follow the law.

According to him, the NDC is still a registered political party and has properly carried out its primaries under the watch of INEC.

"Today, the NDC has filed an appeal against the ruling as well as a stay of execution/injunction. This has been sent with a letter to the INEC chairman and his team to do what is right according to law and what is legally sensible.

"The Nigeria Democratic Congress has come to stay and remains a duly registered party in Nigeria which has participated in all the political processes so far."

He added that the nomination processes are complete and, legally, candidates have emerged from the party for all positions across the country. These primaries were observed and recorded by INEC.

"What is left is the administrative process of submitting the names to INEC, and we have been granted access to the portal to upload our qualified candidates," he said.

Dickson also revealed that they have already uploaded his name and that of the party’s presidential candidate to the commission’s portal.

"My name and that of the presidential candidate have been uploaded to the INEC portal. The name of the vice presidential candidate will be uploaded tomorrow after we finish the paperwork. The process is also ongoing for other candidates," he stated.

The Senator called on party members to stay calm, saying there is still enough time to finish the nomination process as per INEC’s schedule.

"According to the INEC timetable, which we have followed, we have until the 11th of next month to upload all National Assembly candidates. The deadline for governors and State Houses of Assembly candidates is the 17th of July.

"So there is enough time for all candidates’ names to be submitted to INEC and there is no reason for anyone to panic," he added.

The former governor of Bayelsa State also urged those who did not succeed in the primaries to support the party. He mentioned that reconciliation efforts have begun.

"The reconciliation processes have started and we expect them to reach everyone. We assure them that all those who expressed interest will be included in the party’s campaigns, committees, and structures because they are the grassroots strength and the backbone of our party," he said.

Dickson expressed gratitude to INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, for the professionalism shown and called on the judiciary to handle the appeal fairly.

"We thank INEC, led by Professor Joash Amupitan, for their professionalism so far, and we expect them to continue on this path.

"Having filed and served our appeal and the accompanying applications, the ball is now in the court of the judiciary, and we expect the judiciary to do what is right under the law," he said.

This news comes just days after the NDC filed an appeal challenging the Federal High Court decision that created doubt about the party’s registration. The party insists that the judgment did not dissolve or deregister them.

The opposition party maintains that it is still legally recognized until the appeal is decided.