The Independent National Electoral Commission has raised concern over what it described as “unnecessary litigations” and persistent internal leadership crises within political parties.

It warned that the trend is undermining its commitment to democratic consolidation.

The Chairman of the commission, Prof Joash Amupitan (SAN), expressed concern on Wednesday at a technical workshop on the revision of INEC regulations and guidelines for political parties, organised in partnership with the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State.

The technical workshop was organised to align party guidelines with changes introduced in the Electoral Act 2026 (as amended).

The National Assembly passed the Electoral Act on February 18, 2026, and it was signed into law by President Bola Tinubu on February 19, 2026.

Amupitan, speaking at the event, lamented that rather than serving as vehicles for national transformation, political parties were witnessing a disturbing pattern of leadership disputes and internal conflicts.

“Our collective commitment is being challenged by leadership squabbles and judicialised politics.

“In the last cycle alone, INEC was joined in scores of suits that could have been avoided by simple adherence to party constitutions.

“As an independent body, we remain neutral, but we are no longer passive observers,” he said.

Amupitan added, “Political parties in Nigeria face a crisis of internal democracy. Of grave concern is the quality of party primaries.

“As we move towards the primary window of April 23 to May 30, 2026, we must enforce a level playing field.

“The quality of internal party democracy has a direct bearing on the secondary election conducted by INEC.”

The commission boss also lamented the trend of leadership squabbles and infighting in political parties.

“We are currently witnessing a disturbing trend of leadership squabbles and infighting that threaten to turn political parties into theatres of permanent strife rather than vehicles for national development.

“These frequent leadership tussles do more than dilute party ideologies; they spill over into our courtrooms, resulting in a deluge of unnecessary litigations where INEC is routinely joined as a party.

“Each day spent defending these intra-party disputes is a day diverted from our primary mandate of election planning,” he added.

The INEC chairman expressed confidence that the workshop would analyse key provisions of the new Electoral Act and identify necessary amendments to existing regulations and guidelines for political parties.

In his goodwill message, the Country Director of the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, Adebowale Olorunmola, said the guidelines must be strengthened to align with changes introduced in the new Electoral Act.

“The 2022 edition of the INEC Regulations and Guidelines served us well in the conduct of the 2023 general elections and subsequent elections.

“However, current realities are no longer what they were four years ago. Today, we are tasked with bridging the gap between the letter of the 2026 Act and the practical, day-to-day operations of our political parties,” he said.

Earlier, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in Akwa Ibom State, Obo Efanga (SAN), described the workshop as strategic and timely, noting that the review of the Regulations and Guidelines for Political Parties, 2022, was necessary to reflect the provisions of the Electoral Act 2026.

Efanga explained that the document regulates the registration, statutory compliance, administration, conduct and monitoring of political parties and their activities, making its review essential to strengthening the electoral process.

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Interested individuals are already jostling for the seat of the Minister of Power, as the current minister, Adebayo Adelabu, prepares to contest the Oyo State governorship election, The PUNCH has learnt.

This is even as stakeholders urged President Bola Tinubu to appoint a technocrat as his replacement.

Barring any last-minute change of plans, Adelabu is expected to resign his appointment in the coming weeks to vie for the Oyo governorship ticket under the All Progressives Congress.

According to the new Electoral Act 2026 and the revised timetable released by the Independent National Electoral Commission, the conduct of party primaries, including the resolution of disputes arising from them, will commence on April 23 and end on May 30, 2026.

During an engagement with stakeholders in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry in Lagos towards the end of last year, Adelabu had hinted that he would love to achieve some feats “before I leave office”.

Some aides of the minister confided in our correspondent that Adelabu made the remark because he has the intention to contest the governorship race in Oyo State.

In a trending video in October 2025, Adelabu formally declared his intention to run for governor in Oyo, recalling how he lost to the incumbent Governor Seyi Makinde in 2019 and 2023.

“I have now paid my dues. I contested against Seyi (Makinde) in 2019. In 2023, I also contested against Seyi, then as the sitting governor. But in 2027, God has shown that it’s our turn. It’s Adelabu’s turn. Anything that belongs to Adelabu belongs to us all,” he said last year.

Contacted about when the minister is likely to resign, his media aide, Bolaji Tunji, said the president had not directed cabinet members with political ambitions to step down.

“We need to await development, as I am not sure the President has said those with political ambition should resign,” Tunji told our correspondent.

Our correspondent gathered that individuals interested in Adelabu’s job are already lobbying the presidency, knowing full well that he would resign to pursue his gubernatorial ambitions.

Meanwhile, stakeholders appealed to Tinubu to ensure he puts a round peg in a round hole, saying the new minister must be a technocrat.

Speaking with our correspondent, a power sector expert, Bode Fadipe, advised the president to appoint a technocrat as Adelabu’s replacement.

According to Fadipe, anybody to replace Adelabu should be someone with knowledge of the power sector and one who has a national agenda instead of self-interests.

“My choice will be a technocrat who has knowledge of the power sector and whose agenda is national rather than personal interest,” Fadipe stated.

Also, the Convener of PowerUp Nigeria, Adetayo Adegbemle, said whoever is appointed to replace Adelabu, if he eventually resigns, must have a clear understanding of the assignment.

Adegbemle argued that such a person must understand the challenges of the power sector and must have demonstrated that understanding prior to appointment.

He stated that before the inauguration of the Tinubu government, he had published an agenda that spoke directly to the challenges of the power sector, and when Adelabu was appointed as the power minister, he believed that his background in the finance sector would be a benefit to the power sector.

“Prior to the inauguration of Tinubu’s first term, I wrote and published an agenda that spoke directly to the challenges of the power sector, and when this present minister was appointed, I believed his background in the finance sector would have been of benefit.

“However, ministerial appointments being majorly political, I would expect that anyone being appointed should have a clear understanding of the assignment on hand, understand the challenges of the power sector, and have displayed this understanding before being appointed,” he said.

The PowerUp Nigeria convener added that the next minister should reduce political interference in the sector, saying the minister should not play politics with issues affecting the sector.

“I would also expect that such a person be able to play less politics with the power sector, as it is clearly our path to industrialisation, creation of jobs, and basically, an economy-oriented decision that is able to see the office and power sector as economy-driving ones,” Adegbemle advised.

A professor of energy, Dayo Ayoade, argued that Adelabu’s replacement should not be someone with political ambition. He appealed to the president to consider a technocrat with solid knowledge of that power sector.

“The sector is collapsing; we need a technocrat. We need someone who can manage the crisis that we are in,” the don said.

But in a dissenting voice, the coordinator of the Electricity Consumers Forum, Adeola Samuel-Ilori, said that the ministry should be run by the Permanent Secretary till next year.

“He (Tinubu) should let the ministry be run by the permanent secretary till next year when the election will be done and a new cabinet formed if he wins,” Samuel-Ilori said.

According to him, the ministry has always been on autopilot. “The man (Adelabu) was and is still a banker, not an engineer. I think his appointment was for political patronage and reward, even though another ministry would have been better for such consideration, but it’s a big gamble; hence, no minister should be employed once he resigns except if the man has no name to protect, because there is nothing on the ground for such an appointee to do,” Samuel-Ilori stated.

Adelabu, a former Deputy Governor (Operations) at the Central Bank of Nigeria, was appointed by Tinubu in 2023 to oversee the country’s deteriorating power ministry. His appointment generated reactions from some stakeholders who argued that he lacked the technical expertise to manage a sector as critical as power.

However, the Oyo-born politician maintained at the time that he was appointed to reform the power sector and not to operate as an engineer or a technician. Adelabu is expected to resign his ministerial appointment soon if he proceeds with his bid for the Oyo governorship race.

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The Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), has assumed control of the prosecution of a former AGF, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and his son, Abdulaziz, over alleged terrorism-related offences and unlawful possession of firearms.

The development emerged on Wednesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja when the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), informed the court that the case file had been transmitted from the Department of State Services to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation.

“My lord, I was informed by counsel to the DSS that the case file has been transmitted to the office of the AGF,” Oyedepo told the court.

He sought an adjournment to enable the prosecution to review the case file and take an informed decision, adding that a short date would suffice.

“We ask your lordship for a very short date. If we have four days, it will be enough,” he said.

Counsel for the defendants, Mr Adedayo Adedeji (SAN), did not oppose the application but urged the court to strike out the charge if the prosecution failed to open its case on the next adjourned date, alleging lack of diligent prosecution.

Responding, the DPPF described the defence’s proposed application as premature.

Justice Joyce Abdulmalik subsequently adjourned the matter to March 10, 2026, for commencement of trial and directed the prosecution to formally open its case on that date.

The DSS had arraigned Malami and his son on terrorism-related charges, including alleged refusal to prosecute suspected terrorism financiers and unlawful possession of firearms.

In the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/63/2026, Malami is accused of knowingly abetting terrorism financing by allegedly refusing to prosecute suspected terrorism financiers whose case files were forwarded to him while he served as Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.

The defendants were also accused of storing firearms at their residence in Gesse Phase II Area, Birnin Kebbi Local Government Area of Kebbi State, without lawful authority.

Specifically, the prosecution alleged that in December 2025, Malami and his son possessed, without a licence, a Sturm Magnum firearm, 16 live cartridges, and 27 expended cartridges—an act said to be preparatory to terrorism and contrary to the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, as well as the Firearms Act.

At their first appearance on February 3, the defendants pleaded not guilty to all charges.

On the last adjourned date, the court admitted them to bail in the sum of N200m each, with two sureties in like sum.

They were, however, ordered to be remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre pending the perfection of their bail conditions.

As part of the conditions, one of the sureties must own landed property in Maitama or Asokoro, Abuja, and deposit the title documents with the Deputy Chief Registrar of the court, alongside a valid international passport.

The sureties were also directed to depose to affidavits of means and submit two recent passport photographs.

Malami and his son were further ordered to surrender their international passports and submit recent passport photographs to the court.

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