The leadership crisis in the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, has escalated, with one faction petitioning the National Peace Committee and accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, of deliberately blocking its candidates from the upcoming general election.
In a petition dated August 2, 2026, addressed to the Chairman of the National Peace Committee, former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.), the faction urged urgent intervention to compel INEC to recognize its candidates and release the nomination portal access code.
The party’s lawyers, O.I.B. Oyewale & Co. of Ayoka-Okin Chambers, warned that INEC’s continued refusal amounts to “unlawful exclusion” and threatens Nigeria’s democracy.
The faction said it conducted ward, local government, state and national congresses, as well as primary elections, all under INEC supervision.
It also submitted its membership register to the Commission on May 9, 2026, and insists that every aspirant met the requirement of being a registered party member at least 21 days before the primaries.
“No court or administrative body has invalidated our congresses, primaries or the candidates that emerged,” the petition stated.
Despite this, the party alleges that INEC has “inexplicably refused” to release the access code needed to upload candidates’ particulars to the nomination portal.
The deadline for nominations is fast approaching, and the faction says every passing day reduces its chances of meeting INEC’s timetable.
The party warned that denying access to the portal is effectively the same as deregistering a political party through administrative action. “It is contrary to the spirit and letters of the Electoral Act and the constitutional principles of fairness and equal political opportunity,” it said.
The NNPP acknowledged that there is ongoing litigation involving another faction of the party. However, it argued that the court case should not be used to deny its own candidates access to the nomination process.
It called on INEC to convene a meeting with all stakeholders and factions to resolve administrative concerns. The party also stressed that only duly recognized state chairmen are authorized under INEC guidelines to sign and submit nomination forms.
Democracy can only thrive where every registered political party that complies with the law is given equal opportunity to participate in elections without discrimination or administrative impediments.”
In May 2026, the party’s National Executive Committee ratified Bala Mohammed as Acting National Chairman following the resignation of Dr. Ajuji Ahmed.
On July 21, 2026, Dr. Agbo Major, who claims recognition by INEC, told journalists that his faction had completed the upload of its presidential candidate’s details on the INEC portal. He said the process for governorship and State Assembly candidates had also commenced and would run until August 8, 2026.
Dr. Major added that the party had secured the restoration of its original logo — “the Basket of Fruits on the Nigerian map” — on the INEC portal after a legal dispute over the party’s identity. He described it as “a victory for the rule of law and constitutional democracy.”
That makes the current situation more confusing: one faction says it has access and is uploading candidates, while the other faction says it is being locked out.
It said an earlier letter was sent on July 16, 2026, demanding the immediate release of the portal code and notifying the Commission of its intention to go to court.
The latest petition warns that if INEC fails to act, the party will seek judicial intervention “to protect its constitutional and statutory rights and safeguard the integrity of the electoral process.”
The dispute comes at a critical time, with the nomination window set to close soon. If unresolved, it could leave the NNPP with no candidates on the ballot in several states, despite having conducted primaries.
Election observers say the case highlights a broader problem: how administrative decisions by INEC can determine which parties and candidates get to contest, even before voting begins.
The National Peace Committee, chaired by General Abdulsalami, has previously intervened in pre-election disputes to prevent violence and ensure fairness. The NNPP is hoping for a similar mediation now.
INEC has not publicly responded to the latest petition. The Commission will have to clarify whether it recognizes the petitioning faction’s primaries, and if so, why the portal access has not been released.
For the NNPP, time is short. The party says it is ready to provide all documentation to prove compliance, and it wants a stakeholder meeting to settle the matter before the August 8 deadline.
As one party official put it: “This is not about personalities. This is about whether a party that followed the law will be allowed to participate in the election.”
Whether through dialogue or in court, the resolution of this dispute will determine if the NNPP goes into the next general election united, divided, or partially excluded.