Again, political parties ask INEC for extension of deadline for primaries

The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has again asked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to extend the deadline for the conduct of primaries.

In a meeting on Friday with INEC, Yabagi Sani, chairman of IPAC, on behalf of the political parties, requested that the commission extends the deadline for primaries for any date on or before June 10.

INEC had, in February, released its schedule for the 2023 general election after President Muhammadu Buhari assented to the Electoral Act, 2022.

In compliance with the new legislation, the commission fixed April 4 to June 3 for the conduct of party primaries.

The parties had previously requested that the deadline be shifted to August 4.

“The general assembly of IPAC, after an exhaustive examination of the INEC timetable and related issues, arrived at a unanimous decision to request for an extension of 37 days to the deadline of the time frame for the conduct of party primaries and resolution of conflicts arising from the primaries,” they had said.

The request had, however, been rejected.

Speaking on Friday, the IPAC chairman said shifting the deadline to a date on or before June 10 will not affect the commission’s timetable and will give political parties time to be better organised.

“We feel that if we’re given more time, we’ll be able to deliver on the promise of having free and fair elections,” he said.

Responding, Mahmood Yakubu, INEC chairman, said it appears that the parties have now presented a more defined request, adding that the commission would meet with the political parties to understand the basis for requesting the “little adjustment”.

He added that the commission will issue a statement on its decision.