*For stifling opposition candidates
- Fixes Aug 16 for bye-elections
By Euclid Myke, Abuja
Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahood Yakubu has condemned the practice of huge campaign and advert charges slammed on opposition parties by state governments describing it as an infraction on the electoral act.
The Commission also fixed Saturday 16th August 2025 for bye-elections in 16 constituencies across 12 States involving a total of 3,553,659 registered voters spread across 32 Local Government Areas, 356 Wards and 6,987 Polling Units.
While condemning the exorbitant charges, the Commission boss during an interaction with leaders of political parties on Thursday at the Commissions headquarters, Abuja on Thursday, reminded political parties that all forms of campaign must end 24hours before each election.
“I wish to draw attention to the perennial complaint by especially opposition parties about the denial of access to public facilities for electioneering activities. These include the state media, public buildings for meetings and open spaces for rallies and processions. In some cases, prohibitive amounts are charged for outdoor advertising.
“These actions are a violation of the Electoral Act 2022 which prohibits the use of incumbency to the advantage or disadvantage of any Political Party or candidate. Going forward, the Commission will work with the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) and intensify our collaboration with the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON) for a possible legal action in the face of prima facie evidence of the violation of the law”, he said.
He reminded party leaders that the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Area Council elections primaries will end on Monday 30th June 2025 and urged them to tidy up their documentation and upload the list of candidates to the dedicated portal from 21st July to 11th August 2025.
“I wish to remind you that the portal will automatically shut down at 6.00pm on 11th August 2025. I urge you to adhere strictly to the procedure and timelines for candidate nomination, particularly considering the legal requirement for the Commission to publish the personal particulars of candidates in the various constituencies for claims and objections by citizens within one week from the deadline for submission of nominations” Yakubu emphasized.
On the forthcoming Anambra State Governorship election, the commission said that it has already published the final list of 16 candidates and their running mates for the election.
“Campaign in public by political parties commenced two weeks ago on 11th June 2025 and will continue until midnight of Thursday 6th November 2025 i.e. 24 hours prior to Election Day.
“During this period, we expect Political Parties to adhere to our Regulations and Guidelines for meetings, rallies and processions already available on our website. However, considering the importance of the matter to the forthcoming elections, hard copies of the document are included in your folders for this meeting”, he said.
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