The faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aligned with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed reports alleging it failed to meet the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) deadline for submitting its presidential and vice-presidential candidates for the 2027 general election.
The group insisted it successfully uploaded the names and details of its presidential and vice-presidential candidates to INEC’s nomination portal at exactly 11:50 a.m. on Thursday, July 10, 2026, in line with the commission’s guidelines.
The clarification was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday by the PDP faction’s National Publicity Secretary, Jungudo Haruna Mohammed.
The response follows reports claiming that the Wike-backed PDP faction, alongside the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the Labour Party faction led by Nenadi Usman, failed to upload their presidential tickets before INEC’s nomination portal closed at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday.
Rejecting the claim, Mohammed described it as false and misleading, insisting that the party completed its nomination process well within the deadline.
He stated, “The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) successfully uploaded the names and particulars of its Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates to the INEC nomination portal at exactly 11:50 a.m. on Thursday, 10 July 2026, in full compliance with the Commission’s requirements and within the stipulated timeline.”
The faction argued that the report wrongly suggested it had failed to comply with a crucial electoral requirement ahead of the 2027 elections.
It also expressed disappointment that the publication was made without first verifying the information with the party, stressing that reports on electoral compliance should be thoroughly fact-checked to avoid misleading the public.
Reaffirming its commitment to the Electoral Act and INEC’s nomination guidelines, the Wike-backed PDP urged Nigerians to disregard reports alleging it missed the submission deadline.
The faction further called for the publication to be corrected, saying doing so would promote fairness, accuracy, and professionalism in political reporting.