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From Adetutu Folasade-Koyi, Abuja
A former presidential candidate, Dr Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, has rejected the schedule of primaries for the 2027 general election.
Hashim asked the INEC Chairman, Joash Amupitan to resign or face mass action, adding that he cannot be trusted to deliver credible elections in 2027.
He made this demand at a press conference in Abuja, in a formal reaction to the adjusted timetable for 2027 elections, released by INEC on Thursday, February 26, 2026.
Hashim alleged that the new schedule of primaries was an overreach from INEC, deliberately drawn to favour the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“He’s deliberately working to favour the APC, having destabilised the other political parties who are currently trying to sort out themselves in court. That is disingenuous, and evil, to seek to move the primary to an early date.
“If Tinubu does not want to contest the election, let’s face that. We know what to do. If he doesn’t want any election, he doesn’t have to organise any election if doesn’t want any election, and we’ll treat him as somebody who is not ready for elections … who will like to sit tight. President Tinubu is not the first Nigerian head of state to do this. (Late General Sani) Abacha tried it. He didn’t want to leave the office. He got all five political parties to endorse him and what happened?”
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The former presidential aspirant said that, for free and fair elections in 2027, INEC must be reconstituted.
“We cannot waste billions of Naira on an exercise whose outcome is already predictable. It would be injustice to taxpayers and evil against Nigerians.
“There’s a party trying to kill Nigeria’s democracy after 27 years of uninterrupted democratic order. And, just to be clear, genuine democrats in Nigeria and friends of democracy all over the road would not allow this happen. God will not allow it happen because we have suffered so much to get to this point and also, this attempt by the APC and Amupitan’s INEC would fail, just like Abacha’s.”
Hashim insisted that only political parties can determine when to conduct primaries.
“Primaries are the affairs of political parties. It’s an over-reach on the part of INEC to dictate when political parties should conduct primaries. What political parties should do is to nominate, in accordance with the Electoral Act, as to when nominations should be received. So, the INEC is not a headmaster that can impose what it wants on political parties.
“In so far as political parties comply with the Electoral Act, regarding their nominations, a political party can decide to have its presidential primary, even one week to the required time allowed by the Electoral Act or even two days. INEC cannot legislate on issues that are internal affairs of political parties. This is settled law. Taking primaries from July to April is to destabilise the opposition parties.
