The Court of Appeal in Abuja has overturned a Federal High Court judgment that nullified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s revised timetable for the 2027 general elections.
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Thursday, a three-member panel of the appellate court held that INEC acted within the powers granted to it under the Electoral Act, 2026. The court ruled that the commission’s revised election timetable constitutes subsidiary legislation and carries the same legal force as the Electoral Act.
The appellate court held that all deadlines contained in the revised timetable are consistent with the Electoral Act and faulted the lower court for failing to follow binding judicial precedents.
INEC had appealed the May 20 judgment of the Federal High Court, which invalidated the commission’s timetable for party primaries, candidate nominations and other pre-election activities. The commission argued that the suit filed by the Youth Party (YP) was hypothetical and that the trial court failed to determine key jurisdictional issues, thereby denying it a fair hearing.
The electoral body also maintained that the trial court wrongly held that it lacked the authority to prescribe timelines for political parties to conduct their primaries, insisting that its revised timetable was lawfully issued under its statutory powers.
The Federal High Court had earlier ruled that INEC could not shorten the 120-day period provided under the Electoral Act for political parties to submit candidates’ particulars. It also held that the commission lacked the power to impose earlier deadlines for candidate substitution and the publication of the final list of candidates.
The judgment followed a suit filed by the Youth Party, which argued that INEC exceeded its legal authority by fixing timelines that conflicted with the Electoral Act, 2026.
With the Court of Appeal’s decision, INEC’s revised timetable for the 2027 general elections has been restored, reaffirming the commission’s authority to issue and enforce election timelines within the framework of the Electoral Act. Visit www.jocomms.com for more news.
