The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would abide by any court decision regarding Atiku Abubakar’s eligibility to run in the 2027 election, according to Joash Amupitan, chairman of the commission.
He addressed a crowd at London’s Chatham House on Thursday.
Judge Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja dismissed the David Mark-led ADC interim committee last Thursday and overturned all of its rulings, including the selection of Atiku as the party’s presidential candidate.
During the Chatham House session, a representative of Semafor Africa asked Amupitan whether Atiku would be allowed to contest the election if he failed to overturn the judgement.
Amupitan said INEC would comply with any court order, particularly a Supreme Court decision, regardless of its political implications.
“If it travels through the courts and, as you said, he eventually fails, well, I’m obligated under section 285 of the Constitution of Nigeria to obey every court order, especially if it is from the Supreme Court,” he said.
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“But the danger is that whenever there’s such a decision, and it’s you who now has to implement it, you become the problem.
“The problem now is transferred to you. But that is the position of the law.”
Amupitan said INEC had more than 300 court cases, with about 66 days left before the 2027 election.
The INEC chairman said he had previously advocated that pre-election disputes be resolved at least six months to one year before an election to allow the commission to concentrate on preparations.
“I had advocated in several forums that election matters, pre-election matters rather, should be at least a year before the election. Or let’s say six months,” he said.
“So that we can face our logistics. Now we have gone into serious procurement of the most sensitive materials. So that’s a very big issue for us.”
