• As Odinkalu queries reported appointment of showunmi’s spouse to go INEC electoral operations
Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will add Dr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim of Accord Party to the ultimate listing of candidates for the 2027 presidential election.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, introduced this on Thursday in Abuja at an occasion organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA).
Amupitan mentioned the Commission will adjust to the Federal High Court judgment on Hashim’s candidacy, confirming the presidential subject has now grown to 19.
The addition follows the October 5, 2026 judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which ordered Accord Party to recognise Hashim as its presidential candidate and ahead his title to INEC.
That judgment ended months of inside tussle over the celebration’s ticket.
Amupitan mentioned INEC will replicate the courtroom order in its official data, shifting the variety of presidential candidates from the 18 revealed in September to 19.
Speaking on preparations for the final election, the INEC Chairman described the 2027 polls as doubtlessly Africa’s largest democratic train and one of the complicated logistical operations on this planet.
He cited over 103 million registered voters, 176,846 polling items and 774 native authorities areas, noting the size covers presidential, National Assembly, governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections.
The Commission is anticipated to publish an up to date closing listing to formally embrace Hashim according to the courtroom directive.
Meanwhile, Human rights lawyer, Prof. Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, has questioned the reported appointment of Oluyemi Titilayo Adeyemi-Showunmi, spouse of political determine Segun Showunmi, to go the Electoral Operations Department of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Odinkalu raised the problem on October 18 in response to a Leadership report on considerations raised by the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, over latest redeployments within the fee.
“Oh, so @SegunShowunmi’s wife is now in charge of electoral operations in @inecnigeria? It is becoming clearer…!” he wrote on X.
He didn’t elaborate on what the appointment reveals, however his remark has drawn consideration to the political connections round a senior posting at INEC forward of the 2027 normal elections.
Adeyemi-Showunmi’s husband is a distinguished political commentator and former spokesperson for Atiku Abubakar’s 2019 presidential marketing campaign. He has since publicly expressed help for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid.
The connection has prompted questions concerning the appointment, though neither the wedding nor Showunmi’s political stance establishes that his spouse is compromised or that INEC intends to favour any candidate.
The situation, observers be aware, is whether or not INEC can clarify the choice, present it was primarily based on skilled issues and reveal the way it insulates its officers from private or political pursuits.
According to reviews, Adeyemi-Showunmi was moved from her earlier position as Administrative Secretary of INEC’s Lagos workplace to go Electoral Operations on the fee’s headquarters in Abuja.
Isah Magaji Gummi, who beforehand headed the division, was reportedly redeployed to Voter Registry.
Electoral Operations handles important points of election preparation, together with planning and distribution of election supplies, recruitment and coaching of advert hoc personnel, polling preparations and coordination involving collation and returning officers.
While the director of the division can not independently decide an election consequence, the place carries substantial operational accountability, making the rationale for the adjustments a professional matter of public scrutiny.
