The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed claims by Nafiu Bala that his faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) uploaded the details of presidential and vice-presidential candidates to the commission’s nomination portal.
INEC spokesperson Mohammed Haruna stated that the claim is false, explaining that the commission only issued access credentials to the faction led by David Mark, which it officially recognises as the leadership of the party.
According to Haruna, none of the commission’s directors was aware of the alleged upload, adding that only the recognised party leadership has access to INEC’s candidate nomination portal.
He also confirmed that the ADC’s recognised presidential and vice-presidential candidates are Atiku Abubakar and Rotimi Amaechi.
The controversy followed a social media post by Nafiu Bala, who claimed his faction had submitted the names of Chris Uba and Shamsuddin Barkindo as the party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates. He also shared documents and screenshots which he alleged were generated from the INEC portal.
Reacting to the development, the ADC’s recognised leadership described the claim as false and urged Nigerians not to be misled.
In a statement issued by the party’s spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC argued that INEC cannot issue multiple nomination portal access codes to different factions of the same political party.
The party also questioned the authenticity of the documents circulated by Bala’s group and called on INEC to investigate what it described as the alleged forgery and unauthorised use of the commission’s documents.
The ADC maintained that allowing unrecognised groups to access the nomination portal would undermine the credibility of the electoral process.
The dispute follows a prolonged leadership crisis within the party. Last year, Nafiu Bala challenged David Mark’s emergence as the party’s national chairman in court after the resignation of former chairman Ralph Nwosu.
Although the legal dispute temporarily affected the party’s recognition, Bala was later expelled during the ADC’s national convention, while INEC continued to recognise the David Mark-led leadership.
The party recently submitted the names of Atiku Abubakar and Rotimi Amaechi as its official presidential and vice-presidential candidates for the forthcoming election.
