Off-cycle election: INEC urges Nigerians to investigate final candidate list

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged residents of Bayelsa, Imo, and Kogi to scrutinize the final list of candidates for the Nov. 11 election in the three states and challenge any false claims by any of the candidates.

The National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, made this known in a statement in Abuja.

He said that INEC is set to publish the personal particulars of the candidates participating in the Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi governorship elections.

Okoye said that the publication will be done in the state headquarters and local government offices in the three states in line with the provisions of Section 29 (3) of the Electoral Act 2022.

He said that all 18 political parties nominated candidates for Kogi, while 17 parties sponsored candidates for Bayelsa and Imo States.

“In particular, any aspirant who participated in his or her party’s primaries with reasonable grounds to believe that the information provided by the candidate is false can challenge the nomination at the Federal High Court as provided in Section 29(5) of the Electoral Act 2022.”

NAN reports that on Oct. 25, 2022, the commission released the timetable and schedule of activities for the three off-cycle governorship elections in Bayelsa, LMO, and Kogi scheduled to hold on Nov. 11.

Political parties conducted their primaries as required by law and uploaded the names and personal particulars of their candidates and running mates to the INEC candidate nomination portal by the deadline of 6 p.m. on May 5.

Okoye said that all the political parties sponsoring candidates for the three elections have submitted duly completed Forms EC9, containing personal particulars supported by sworn affidavits, as well as EC9B, containing the names of their candidates.