THIS DAWN — Nigeria’s electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is fast entrenching a dangerous culture of impunity—one that undermines the rule of law, distorts democratic competition, and erodes public confidence in the electoral process.
The Supreme Court delivered its judgment on the Labour Party leadership dispute in April 2025. That judgment should have brought finality.
Yet, for months afterward, INEC deliberately left Julius Abure’s name on its records as party chairman.
This was not an administrative oversight; it was a calculated inaction.
The effect was clear: to inconvenience Peter Obi and destabilise the Labour Party at a critical political moment.
INEC’s arbitrariness
More troubling is INEC’s selective activism.
When it suited the Commission, it suddenly “remembered” that Abure’s tenure had expired—weaponising that same issue to disqualify candidates.
By that single act, INEC caused irreparable harm to individuals who had lawfully participated in party processes in good faith.
Those candidates lost nomination fees, campaign resources, time, political momentum, and, in some cases, their entire electoral prospects.
This is not neutrality. It is arbitrariness.
Implications of INEC’s arbitrariness
INEC cannot claim obedience to court judgments only when convenient, nor can it oscillate between inaction and hyperactivity depending on political outcomes.
An electoral body that picks and chooses when to enforce the law ceases to be an umpire and becomes a participant.
The affected candidates should not quietly move on.
They should be encouraged—collectively and individually—to seek judicial redress against INEC.
Substantial damages are not only justified; they are necessary. Without real consequences, institutional misconduct becomes routine.
Financial liability
Financial liability is one of the few tools capable of enforcing discipline in public bodies that have grown accustomed to acting without accountability.
Democracy cannot survive where institutions disregard Supreme Court judgments, frustrate political participation, and inflict losses without consequence.
INEC must be reminded, firmly and legally, that it is subject to the law—not above it.
If the courts do not impose costs for this behaviour, the lesson INEC will learn is that impunity pays.
And that is a lesson Nigeria cannot afford.
