The Independent National Electoral Commission has dismissed allegations by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that it granted a rival faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) access to its candidate nomination portal, insisting that only the David Mark-led leadership of the party is recognised.
The commission’s response followed claims by Atiku’s Media Office that INEC had allegedly issued access codes to the ADC faction led by Nafiu Gombe to upload candidates’ names, describing the move as an attempt to undermine the opposition ahead of the 2027 general election.
Speaking on Tuesday, a senior INEC official, who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to speak publicly, rejected the allegation, maintaining that the commission operates strictly within the provisions of the Constitution, the Electoral Act and its own regulations.
“INEC did not give access codes to Nafiu Gombe as claimed by Atiku’s Media Office. INEC operates based on the legal framework guiding elections and the electoral system in Nigeria,” the official said.
He explained that, according to the commission’s records, the recognised leadership of the ADC remains the National Executive Committee headed by former Senate President David Mark as National Chairman and former Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as National Secretary.
“So, based on that, the recognised leadership of ADC, according to our records, is that of the Senator David Mark-led leadership. If you go to our portal right now, Senator David Mark is the chairman of the ADC, while Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is the Secretary.
“According to records, INEC did not give Nafiu Gombe access codes. So, whatever anyone is saying, we are not really interested,” the official added.
The commission also dismissed suggestions that Gombe or his associates could have submitted candidates through its portal, insisting that only recognised party officials have access to the system.
“It’s as good as saying that Nafiu Gombe cannot upload the names of candidates on the INEC portal because he is not the officially recognised chairman of the ADC.
“Gombe, or any of his agents, aides or close allies did not get any access codes from INEC to upload names of candidates. In fact, the question is which portal did they upload the names? INEC does not recognise anything from Nafiu Gombe,” the official stated.
INEC further rejected allegations by Atiku’s camp that its chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, was interfering in the ADC’s internal affairs or working to weaken opposition parties.
“The allegation by Atiku’s Media Office that Amupitan is trying to weaken opposition parties is a baseless allegation. The attempt to drag Amupitan into political parties’ internal crisis is an exercise in futility.
“Amupitan did not go to court. Amupitan did not drag Nafiu Gombe to court and Amupitan did not drag the David Mark-led ADC to court; it’s a party crisis, so why are they trying to drag Amupitan into it?
“The allegations are baseless. They should rather focus on strengthening their party than blaming Amupitan for their problems,” the official said.
The controversy arose after Atiku’s Media Office alleged on Monday that Gombe had claimed to have uploaded the names of ADC candidates to INEC’s nomination portal, a development it described as evidence of partisanship by the electoral commission.
The ADC also denied the claim on Tuesday.
In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, the party insisted that INEC recognises only the David Mark-led leadership and could not have issued a separate access code to any rival faction.
The party also called on the electoral commission to investigate the alleged forgery and unauthorised use of documents purportedly issued by INEC following claims by Gombe’s faction that it had uploaded the names of the party’s presidential candidate and other nominees.
The leadership crisis within the ADC has deepened following the emergence of Mark as National Chairman and Aregbesola as National Secretary, with rival factions challenging the appointments as political alignments intensify ahead of the 2027 general election.