INEC empowered to deregister parties, court rules

A Federal High Court in Abuja has affirmed the powers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to deregister political parties which fail to comply with the provisions of the law.

The provision of the law is with particular reference to Section 225(a) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

Justice Taiwo Taiwo, in a judgment delivered in a suit filed by the National Unity Party (NUP), one of the 74 parties deregistered by INEC in February, affirmed that the constitutional power of the electoral commission and the reasons given by it for the deregistration of parties were valid, in conformity with the law and sacrosanct.

The judge held that the decision of INEC could not be affected by anticipated local government elections by some states which dates were not fixed, certain or even ascertainable.

The court, therefore, held that the deregistration of NUP as a political party in Nigeria was lawfully done in exercise of vested constitutional powers of INEC in accordance with Section 225(a) of the 1999 Constitution.

The deregistration of the political parties by INEC had generated a lot of controversies, with INEC holding the position that after fulfilling its constitutional roles of conducting presidential, federal and state legislature, governorship and FCT council elections, it was right for it to go ahead with the deregistration of the parties that did not meet the benchmark set by law.