BREAKING: 2027: The Electoral Act And The Constitution Are Silent On When Primaries Should Be Conducted – Uzzi

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According to a video posted on the official YouTube channel of Arise News on Saturday, May 23, 2026, former Director of Voter Education at Independent National Electoral Commission, Oluwole Osaze-Uzzi, stated that existing Nigerian laws do not specify the exact period political parties must conduct their primaries before elections.

Speaking during an interview on the controversy surrounding the Federal High Court judgment on INEC’s timetable, Osaze-Uzzi explained that both the Constitution and the Electoral Act only provide timelines for the submission of candidates’ names to INEC, not for the conduct of party primaries.

According to him, “The Electoral Act and the Constitution are silent on when primaries should be conducted.”

He explained that because there is no direct provision fixing dates for party primaries, INEC introduced guidelines aimed at helping political parties complete their nomination processes before the deadline for submission of candidates.

Osaze-Uzzi noted that the Electoral Act clearly states that political parties must submit the names of their candidates to INEC not later than 120 days before an election. However, he argued that the law does not expressly state when the primaries themselves must hold.

The former INEC official added that the disagreement over the issue has now created legal debates on the extent of INEC’s powers in setting timelines connected to party primaries and internal party processes.