The Kano State chapter of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has explained why its governorship candidate, Aminu Abdussalam-Gwarzo, was missing from the final list of candidates released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The party urged its members to remain calm, saying the omission was caused by a computer glitch at the electoral commission and not by any failure on the part of the party to complete the necessary nomination processes.
The NDC’s Public Relations Officer in Kano State, Yusif Fasaha, gave the explanation in a statement made available to journalists in Kano shortly after INEC published the final list on Saturday.
Fasaha said the party had contacted the commission over the development and received assurances that the error would be corrected.
“I want to assure you that, as the PRO of the party, the problem is not from us,” he said.
“We have consulted INEC, and they told us that the problem was from the computer and that they would rectify it.”
The party spokesman appealed to members and supporters not to panic over the omission, expressing confidence that the commission would publish a corrected list containing the candidate’s name.
“So, everybody should remain calm. Between now and Monday, another list containing his name will be released,” Fasaha added.
He maintained that Abdussalam-Gwarzo had fulfilled all the requirements for the governorship election, insisting that the party completed the necessary processes within the stipulated timeframe.
According to him, the party had reviewed the published list and was continuing consultations with the relevant authorities to ensure that the issue was resolved.
The commission’s final list 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.
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 ahead of the February 6, 2027 election.
The commission published a list of 16 cleared candidates for the Gombe governorship election, but Pantami’s name was missing despite his earlier inclusion in the provisional list released on August 29.
The candidates included Bala Bello Tinka of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna of the APC and Babayo Ardo Kumo of the NDC.
Others were Zubairu Mu’azu Halilu of the Labour Party, Lamela L. Silas of the Allied Peoples Movement, Ibrahim Jalo Abubakar of the Peoples Redemption Party and Adamu Mohammed Ma’aji of the Social Democratic Party.
Pantami’s omission came amid legal disputes over his emergence as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Gombe State.
The former minister initially sought the APC governorship ticket but left the party after it settled for Gwamna as its consensus candidate. He subsequently joined the PDP and emerged as the party’s flag bearer through voice affirmation at its governorship primary.
However, a Federal High Court sitting in Gombe 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, securing 2,054 votes to defeat Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki and Usman Aliyu Garry.
Garry had challenged Pantami’s emergence, arguing that the required primary election had not been properly conducted before the former minister was declared the party’s candidate.
Despite winning the court-ordered rerun, questions remained over Pantami’s eligibility following the Supreme Court’s September 24, 2026, judgment on provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to political party membership registers and candidate eligibility.
The Supreme Court affirmed the constitutionality of Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7) of the Electoral Act 2026 and upheld INEC’s revised timetable and schedule of activities for the 2027 elections.
The provisions require political parties to comply with stipulated deadlines for submitting their membership registers to INEC and restrict parties from fielding candidates whose names were not included in the registers submitted within the required period.
INEC has maintained that political parties that fail to comply with the requirements will not be allowed to participate through candidates whose nominations breach the law.
Mohammed Haruna, an INEC national commissioner in charge of information and voter education, said the commission would not permit political parties to replace candidates affected by the provisions.
Haruna made the clarification during an appearance on Trust TV’s programme on Wednesday evening, explaining that allowing substitutions in such circumstances could enable parties to benefit from their own violations.
“It’s like you committed an offence. And then, you come and benefit from it,” he said.
He cited previous electoral disputes involving Zamfara and Plateau states to illustrate the consequences of political parties failing to comply with electoral requirements.
Haruna also indicated that the commission expected to make a definite pronouncement on the implications of the Supreme Court judgment by the following Tuesday.
