The recent adjustment in the 2027 election time table has introduced a fresh challenge for the Independent |National Electoral Commission (INEC) as it shortens the period for preparations, INEC National Commissioner, Malam Muhammed Haruna, has said.

To avoid a clash with the Ramadan fasting period, the Senate amended the Electoral Act to reduce the notice period for elections from 360 days to 300 days, paving the way for adjustment of the 2027 general election timetable.

Haruna, who was a guest on Trust TV programme ‘30 Minutes with Mannir Dan-Ali’, said the adjustment is going to make things a little bit more difficult for INEC as one of the biggest achievements of the Commission under Professor Mahmood Yakubu was the 360 days the commission had to plan ahead of elections.

“For the first time, at least since 1999, we were able to print all the ballot papers we needed, all the resources we needed inside. Within Nigeria. Not outside,” he stated adding that “this is a big advantage that we are now throwing away.”

Haruna said another major concern he has over the 2026 Electoral Act is limiting the method of nomination of candidates to two; consensus and direct primary. He said this is because with consensus, a lot of things could be going on under the table that the commission may not know about whereas INEC can only deal with what is out there on the table.

On the low turnout of voters during the last FCT elections, Haruna said the commission did everything practicable for people to come out and vote but INEC is often blamed for that.

He explained that INEC’s basic responsibility is civic education, to tell people how to vote but the onus of turnout lies with the political parties.

“They have members. At least when they give us a list of their members, there are hundreds, if not millions. So they are the ones – we can’t tell people, go out and vote for X, Y, Z. And the bit that we will do, of course, we can do a bit more.”

On calls for the removal of the INEC chairman Prof Joash Amupitan on his position on Christian genocide, Haruna said what is important is the future and not what happened in the past.

“We all have our biases. We all have our prejudices. The important thing is, do you allow it to get in the way of your being objective in your current assignment? It’s something that, you know, we’ll have to give him the benefit of doubt”, he said.

He said since it’s the prerogative of the president and of the senators to confirm such an appointment and they’ve gone ahead in their own wisdom to do that and going by the elections that Amupitan has conducted and the meetings they’ve had so far, “I’m inclined to give him the benefit of doubt.” (Daily Trust)