Supreme Court Ruling: Ex-IGP insists he remains SDP candidate in Nasarawa

Former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has insisted that he remains the Social Democratic Party (SDP) governorship candidate in Nasarawa State, despite questions raised over some 2027 nominations following a Supreme Court judgement on the Electoral Act.

Mr Adamu’s campaign said the 24 September judgement did not disqualify him, nullify the SDP’s membership register or invalidate the direct primary through which he emerged as the party’s candidate.

The development comes as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) reviews the implications of the Supreme Court judgement, which restored provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 relating to political party membership registers and the nomination of candidates.

INEC’s Deputy Director, Voter Education and Publicity, Wilfred Ifogah, said the commission would obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgement and review it before deciding its next steps.

“The Commission has to meet after receiving the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgement,” Mr Ifogah said in response to an inquiry on the implications of the ruling.

Adamu’s position

Mr Adamu’s director of digital media and strategic communications, Otaru Douglas, said the Supreme Court judgement was not directed at the former police chief or the SDP.

“The judgement is a general affirmation of INEC’s regulatory powers over party membership registers. It is not a judgement against the Social Democratic Party, nor against Rtd. IGP Mohammed Abubakar Adamu,” Mr Douglas said.

He said no court had invalidated the SDP’s membership register, cancelled the direct primary that produced Mr Adamu, or ordered INEC to remove his name from the ballot.

Mr Douglas also said the SDP had compiled and submitted its membership register to INEC in accordance with the law and that the nomination process that produced Mr Adamu followed Section 84(2) through a direct primary monitored by INEC.

He, therefore, maintained that Mr Adamu’s candidacy remains valid.

The SDP has separately said Mr Adamu had been a member of the party for about three months before its governorship primary, arguing that his emergence was not affected by the Supreme Court ruling.

What the Supreme Court ruled

The Supreme Court, on 24 September, upheld INEC’s appeal against a 16 July judgement of the Court of Appeal, which had voided provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 dealing with political party membership registers and candidate nomination.

A seven-member panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro set aside the Court of Appeal judgement and restored the earlier Federal High Court decision dismissing a challenge to the provisions.

The apex court upheld the validity of Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026.

Section 77 concerns political parties’ membership registers, including requirements for the register submitted to INEC before primaries, congresses, and conventions.

Section 84(2) provides for the nomination of candidates through direct primaries or consensus.

The case originated from a legal challenge by the Zenith Labour Party to the disputed provisions.

The Supreme Court did not, however, specifically name Mr Adamu or any other candidate in the judgement or issue an order disqualifying him from the Nasarawa governorship election.

The practical implications of the judgement for individual candidates have nevertheless generated debate among political parties and legal practitioners, with some candidates insisting that their nominations remain valid.

Adamu’s earlier candidacy controversy

The latest development comes weeks after Mr Adamu’s candidacy had already faced uncertainty.

The SDP initially had Musa Angbazo listed as its Nasarawa governorship candidate by INEC before the party replaced him with Mr Adamu following a fresh primary in September.

Mr Adamu emerged as the replacement primary winner after Mr Angbazo withdrew from the race. The exercise was conducted across the state’s 13 local government areas, with 28,637 delegates reported to have participated.

Mr Adamu, who finished second in the APC governorship primary, subsequently moved to the SDP to continue his bid for the Nasarawa governorship.

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His emergence as the SDP candidate was previously reported by PREMIUM TIMES after the party conducted the replacement primary.

The former police chief, who served as Inspector-General of Police from 2019 to 2021, is from Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital.

INEC awaits judgement copy

For now, INEC has not announced any decision removing Mr Adamu from the 2027 governorship race.

Mr Ifogah said the commission would first receive and study the Certified True Copy of the Supreme Court judgment before meeting to determine the appropriate steps to take.

The SDP, meanwhile, maintains that the Supreme Court ruling does not affect Mr Adamu’s emergence as its candidate.

The former IGP is, therefore, set to remain at the centre of the debate over the application of the restored Electoral Act provisions to candidates whose party membership and nomination processes may come under scrutiny ahead of the 2027 elections.