Author: Gist Correspondent

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has clarified that the presence of the Anyanwu-led National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) at its recent meeting with political parties does not amount to an endorsement or recognition of any faction within the party.

The clarification followed questions over the absence of the Turaki-led group at the engagement, which sparked speculation that INEC had accorded recognition to one side in the party’s ongoing leadership crisis.

Speaking in an interview, INEC’s Deputy Director of Publicity, Mr Wilfred Osilama Ifogah, explained that the commission formally invited the PDP as a political party, not any faction or group within it.

According to him, invitations to such meetings are addressed to the party’s leadership positions, typically the chairman and secretary, and not to specific individuals.

“If we invite a party, we invite the party, not individuals. The letters are sent to the party,” Ifogah said.

He noted that INEC does not determine or influence who represents a party at its meetings, stressing that the commission accepts whoever the party presents as its representatives.

“Whoever the party sends is acceptable to the commission because the invitation is to the party, not to a particular person,” he said.

Dismissing suggestions that INEC recognised the Anyanwu-led NWC by virtue of its attendance, Ifogah maintained that the commission does not concern itself with internal party divisions.

“I didn’t know you are the one calling it a faction,” he said, adding that INEC does not categorise or validate factions within political parties.

He explained that during such meetings, party representatives usually introduce themselves and may indicate whether they are attending in a representative capacity for substantive officers.

“Sometimes, someone will say he is representing the chairman, or that he is standing in for the secretary. That is how it works,” he said.

Ifogah further stated that INEC does not verify or interrogate such representations, as its responsibility ends once a party responds to an invitation.

“As far as we are concerned, it is the party that sends people. We don’t decide who comes,” he added.

On the lingering leadership crisis within the PDP, Ifogah reiterated that internal party disputes fall outside INEC’s mandate.

“The internal crisis has nothing to do with us. Whenever they settle, we work with them,” he said.

However, he advised political parties to resolve leadership disputes ahead of key electoral activities, warning that unresolved crises could hinder participation in time-bound processes.

“The only advice we give is that they should settle whatever internal issues they have before activities begin. Whoever the substantive leadership is must sign the necessary documents,” he said.

He stressed that INEC’s engagements with political parties are aimed at participation and information-sharing, not the validation of internal party leadership.

“What is important is that invitations are sent, parties attend, and the engagement takes place. That is what matters to us,” Ifogah concluded.