By Vincent Ujumadu

AWKA— AN Onitsha-based civil society organization, the Voters Rights International, has written to the chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, urging the commission to relist all de-registered political parties, in obedience to the Court of Appeal judgment on the matter.

Following the de-registration of some political parties by INEC, President of Voters Rights International, Mr. Jezie Ekejiuba, a human rights lawyer, dragged the commission to the Federal High Court in Awka, challenging the action.

He lost the case and subsequently appealed the judgment at the Court of Appeal in Enugu, which ruled that the INEC has no powers to de-register political parties.

INEC

However, following the recent INEC relisting of some political parties it earlier de-registered, Ekejiuba said in the letter dated March 24, 2017 and addressed to the INEC chairman that it was wrong for the commission to embark on selective relisting of the de-registered political parties.

He urged the INEC chairman to make available, information on the full list of registered political parties eligible to sponsor candidates for the forthcoming general election in the country to enable his group verify the commission’s compliance with the Court of Appeal judgment.

According to him, the interpretation of Court of Appeal judgment was that all de-registered political parties in Nigeria should be restored.

He said: “While seven political parties were de-registered on August 18, 2011, 28 others were de-registered on December 6, 2012 during the pendency of the suit, bringing the total number of de-registered political parties to 35, which were the subject matter of the appeal. This application is, therefore, to confirm due compliance with the Appeal Court judgment.”

Ekejiuba said he would not hesitate to file Form 49 against the INEC chairman for disobedience of the court order should the commission treat his application with levity, arguing that it was a waste of resources to embark on the formation of new political parties when there were many political parties in existence in the country.