The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has shifted the deadline for political parties to conduct their primaries for the 2023 general elections by six days.
This was announced by INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, on Friday in Abuja few hours after stakeholders from various political parties met with the leadership of the electoral umpire led by the INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, at the commission’s headquarters in the nation’s capital.
The politicians through the platform of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) had again appealed to INEC to adjust the timetable for the forthcoming polls.
The Chairman of IPAC, Sani Yabagi of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), explained that adjusting the timetable of the election became necessary because of the current timetable which he said was too tight for the political parties.
In response to the appeal, INEC explained that the demand for a 37 – 60 days extension of the timeline for primaries and the nomination of candidates could not be granted because it would affect other scheduled activities on the timetable.
The statement reads in part, “The commission has decided to allow the request of the political parties since the six-day period does not conflict with the next scheduled activity which is the submission of the list of nominated candidates or any of the subsequent timelines which remain sacrosanct.
“However, this request is granted in respect of outstanding primaries only without prejudice to those already concluded by political parties. The commission will not monitor already concluded primaries.”
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