The Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) has denied releasing another “final list” of
candidates taking part in the 2023 general election.
Several news mediums had reported that the
electoral umpire published another list that contains the names of some
candidates excluded from a previous list published on the
commission’s website.
Disowning
the fresh list on Monday, INEC’s spokesman, Festus Okoye, said “there cannot be
a final list of candidates with just 46 days to the General Election.”
He said, “The Commission wishes to state
categorically that no new publication of the final list of candidates was
released as reported. The public should therefore discountenance the story.
“For
the record, the final list of candidates for the 2023 General Election was
published at least 150 days before the day of the election in compliance with the
provision of Sec. 32(1) of the Electoral Act 2022. Accordingly, the final list
for Presidential and National Assembly elections was published on 20th
September 2022 while that of Governorship and State Assembly elections was
published two weeks later on 4th October 2022. These are clearly indicated as
item 8 on the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2023 General
Election released by the Commission on 26th February 2022.
“There cannot be a final list of candidates
with just 46 days to the General Election except for names published as
substitutions for candidates nominated earlier in compliance with Court Order.
Moreover, some of the candidates that allegedly made the new “final” list are
still in Court and the matter is therefore subjudice. Political parties,
litigants and the public should be guided accordingly.”
It was reported that
INEC had published the names of 18 presidential and 4,223 National Assembly
candidates in the final list it published on September 20, 2022.
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