Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of allegedly removing candidates nominated by the party for the 2027 general election and replacing them with names it said were unknown to the party..
The allegation was contained in a statement issued on Sunday by the NDC National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas Zuwoghe, following INEC’s publication of candidates for the State Houses of Assembly elections.
The party said the alleged substitution was particularly evident in Anambra State, where it claimed that 10 names published as its candidates did not emerge from its nomination process.
.The disputed names, according to the NDC, are Umennaajiego Jude Ezenwa for Onitsha South 1; Akpotue Obinna Chibuike for Onitsha South 2; Nwankwo Chiemerie for Orumba North; Maduagwu Eric K for Anaocha 1; Ngoebisi Obinna for Idemili North; Isintume Charles for Njikoka 1; Nwachukwu Nonso for Nnewi South; Okeke Ifeanyi Akunne for Nnewi South 2; Nnonyelu Samson E. for Ayamelum; and Azotani Chuks Francis for Dunukofia.
Zuwoghe described the development as unacceptable, alleging that the names were neither authorised nor submitted by the party to INEC.
“The Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, totally condemns the action of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its officials over the uploading and publication of unauthorized names in various constituencies, principally in the Anambra State House of Assembly,” he said.
He called on the INEC Chairman to immediately investigate how the disputed names came to be published as NDC candidates.
The NDC chairman further alleged that the issue was not restricted to Anambra, claiming that the party had observed a similar pattern in other constituencies, including Benue and Imo.
He said the alleged discrepancies had embarrassed the party and its genuine candidates while creating disaffection among its supporters in Nigeria and the diaspora.
“We, as a party, are also carrying out our own independent investigation, the preliminary findings of which are already pointing to the complicity of INEC officials in foisting names purporting to be our candidates, but who are not from us,” Zuwoghe alleged.
According to the NDC chairman, the party completed its primaries and appeal process before stakeholders from Anambra, working with the national leadership, representatives of its presidential candidate and the party’s appeals panel, produced what he described as a final list of candidates.
He said the list was signed off by the relevant stakeholders before being uploaded to the INEC portal using the access code provided to the party.
However, Zuwoghe alleged that INEC officials responsible for the backend of the portal left some of the party’s names on “Pending” status.
“Their claim was that their system already had those names, which they said were submitted by their officials who monitored the NDC primaries on the field,” he said.
The NDC chairman said the party subsequently appealed the disputed entries and supplied the names of its preferred candidates, together with the necessary covering letter, but alleged that the commission did not make the requested changes.
He further accused INEC of collecting Form EC-9 directly from the disputed individuals rather than through the party.
“To further confirm that there was a predetermined effort on the part of INEC to impose the said candidates on the party, and embarrass both NDC and Mr. Peter Obi, INEC went behind the NDC to collect the Form EC-9 directly from the candidates, bypassing the party, and uploading same,” he alleged.
INEC’s published 2026 regulations state that political parties are to use access codes supplied by the commission to upload the names and particulars of their candidates through the Candidate Nomination Portal, including the prescribed EC-09 forms and related documentation.
Zuwoghe argued that if the commission had concerns about the authenticity of candidates submitted by the party, it should not have replaced them with individuals allegedly not nominated by the NDC.
According to him, INEC could have left the affected positions vacant pending the resolution of any disagreement.
“At the very worst, INEC could have left us with no candidates for those positions, if they knew they were unwilling to engage us in addressing any perceived anomaly,” he said.
He accused the electoral commission of creating what he described as an emerging pattern in which political parties, particularly opposition parties, were allegedly prevented from uploading their preferred candidates while other individuals were placed on their lists.
The NDC chairman said such a development could trigger internal crises within political parties and undermine public confidence in the electoral process ahead of the 2027 elections.
The party said it would pursue administrative and legal avenues to challenge the disputed nominations.
Zuwoghe said the NDC would approach a court of competent jurisdiction to seek redress and restore the candidates it said were legitimately nominated by the party.
“Even as we move to approach the court of competent jurisdiction to seek redress and restore our authentic candidates, the general public and our millions of supporters should note that these are not our candidates,” he said.
The allegation comes as INEC proceeds with preparations for the 2027 general elections. The commission has fixed January 16, 2027 for the presidential and National Assembly elections and **February 6, 2027** for governorship and State House of Assembly elections.
INEC officially lists the Nigeria Democratic Congress as a registered political party, with Senator Cleopas Moses Zuwoghe listed as its national chairman.
As of the latest reports available, INEC had not publicly issued a response to the NDC’s specific allegations. The claims, therefore, remain allegations by the party pending an explanation or investigation by the electoral commission.
