The Kano State chapter of Nigeria's Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has clarified that a computer glitch at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was the reason its governorship candidate, Aminu Abdussalam-Gwarzo, was missing from the final list of candidates released. NDC's Public Relations Officer in Kano State, Yusif Fasaha, stated that the party had contacted INEC and received assurances that the error would be corrected.
According to Fasaha, the party completed all necessary processes for Abdussalam-Gwarzo's nomination within the stipulated timeframe. He urged party members and supporters to remain calm, expressing confidence that INEC would publish a corrected list containing Abdussalam-Gwarzo's name. The final list, released on October 10, contained 17 governorship candidates and their running mates from different political parties.
Among those listed was Governor Abba Yusuf, who was named as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), alongside his running mate, Murtala Sule-Garo. INEC's omission of Abdussalam-Gwarzo came as a surprise, given that the NDC had fulfilled all requirements for the governorship election. The party is continuing consultations with relevant authorities to ensure the issue is resolved.
In a related development, INEC omitted former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, from its final list of governorship candidates for Gombe State. Pantami's name was missing despite his earlier inclusion in the provisional list released on August 29. The commission published a list of 16 cleared candidates for the Gombe governorship election.
Pantami's omission comes amid legal disputes over his emergence as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Gombe State. A Federal High Court nullified his initial emergence on May 26, following a challenge to the primary process, and ordered the party to conduct a fresh primary. Pantami later won the rerun primary held on September 29.
Despite winning the court-ordered rerun, questions remain over Pantami's eligibility following the Supreme Court's September 24, 2026, judgment on provisions of the Electoral Act 2026. The judgment affirmed the constitutionality of sections requiring political parties to comply with stipulated deadlines for submitting membership registers to INEC.
INEC National Commissioner, Mohammed Haruna, stated that the commission would not permit political parties to replace candidates affected by the provisions. He cited previous electoral disputes involving Zamfara and Plateau states to illustrate the consequences of political parties failing to comply with electoral requirements.
Key points
- NDC attributes omission of Kano governorship candidate to INEC computer glitch.
- Isa Pantami omitted from Gombe State governorship candidates list amid legal disputes.
- INEC maintains stance on not allowing substitutions for candidates breaching electoral law.
