2027 General Elections: AN OPEN LETTER TO NIGERIA'S OPPOSITION LEADERSHIP

By Prince Tony Akeni, Sunday May 17, 2026

ATTENTION:

🔺His Excellency Sen. Seriake Dickson, National Leader NDC

🔺His Excellency Peter Obi, His Excellency Engr. Rabiu Kwankwaso, Presidential Ticket Aspirants NDC

🔺Distinguished Patriot Prof. Pat Utomi, Global Leader The Big Tent

🔺National Executive Councils, NDC, Labour Party and all stakeholders to whom it may concern

The 2027 General Elections, especially the Presidential Ballot, shall be akin to a penalty own goal for both the ruling APC and the consolidated opposition, now led by the NDC. One fatal misstep by APC in the last mile of the race will make the ruling party lose the presidential race to the opposition. In the same vein, one last-mile error in the opposition's roadmap shall cost it the presidential victory, paving way for the second term return of APC to summit power.

This is an urgent call for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and the Labour Party of Nigeria (LP) to, amongst other matters arising, waive now or drastically reduce to near zero "Party Development" Fees, Expression of Interest Forms for financially disadvantaged aspirants, extend deadlines for obtaining/submission of forms, and subsequently to stagger aspirants screening across new dates.

This is why:

1.  The NDC's triple-step aspirant fees involving Expression of Interest Form, #3million;

Nomination Form  #5million; and what the NDC christens "Development Levy," #20million, totalling #28million for senatorial ticket, are prohibitive and unaffordable to many genuine aspirants and good governance enthusiasts who recently joined the party. To make matters worse, even though the fees are lower for House of Rep and State House of Assembly aspirants, these fees are to be paid within a short blood pumping notice of 14 days. The shortness of the notice to raise these amounts by aspirants affects the majority of them who thronged into the party from when Mr. Peter Obi joined the NDC on Sunday May 2, 2026 up to the high pressure closing date which officially ended at 6pm today Sunday May 17. Labour Party's ended two days ago on Saturday May 15, 2016.

2.  The above condition has constrained numerous potent, ballot winning popular aspirants who could not afford the fees to pull out in frustration. The wailing despair of these aspirants is audible and pandemic across the country and at both the NDC and LP national quarters in Abuja which were visited by monitors.

3.  Owing to the above reason, as aspirants pulled the breaks and some entirely cancelled out their vying interest, the NDC and Labour Party may not have active, viable and effectual candidates in many constituencies across the country unless they timely put in place measures to revisit the exercise and remedy the voids. 

4.  Flowing from Labour Party's experience in the 2023 elections, the far-reaching consequence of these overlooked aspirants vacuum is that the now frontline NDC opposition may win massive votes in many constituencies of the country but the absence of substantive candidates to lead ballot day trenches and to ensure that the party's votes are counted will leave room for sweeping rigging, ballot poaching, projection and announcement of false results by the ruling APC and its conniving institutions. 

5.  Furthermore, aggrieved opposition aspirants who were prevented from participating in the election because of their inability to meet the NDC's "unaffordable" Expression of Interest/Nomination Forms and "Development Levy" will be unenthusiastic to defend the votes of their constituencies for the NDC or NDC-LP coalition, if such alliance or similar fraternal ballot coalition came to play. 

6.  The frustration of being disallowed from being candidates will also make some previously pro-opposition actors become willing tools and easy converts to sellout the opposition's ballot harvests in their constituencies to the ruling party.

7.  Also from the experience of Labour Party in the 2023 elections, you will recall that the initial low affordability of LP aspirant forms and outright waivers in some cases enabled okada riders and candidates of similar low economic class to win elections on the party's platform. NDC, LP or any visionary opposition coalition will do itself a whale of good to replicate this template. This is because where a political party has active candidates, in the process of working hard to sell their candidacy to the electorates, they stamp the presence, strength and ballot teeth of their party in their constituency by installing effective party agents for victory. This will help the NDC and LP to have polling unit troops and vote protection loyalists in every constituency across Nigeria to checkmate rigging or announcement of false results, vices the ruling party is unprecedentedly noted for.

8.  Subsequent to the above, the NDC and LP should, as additional stratagem, make room for place-holding aspirants to fill every elective slot throughout the country, ensuring that such place-holders would seamlessly withdraw for substantive candidates before the expiration of INEC's candidates submission deadline. 

9.  Finally, to accommodate the initiatives propounded above, one will strongly urge that both the NDC, LP or any other partnership in the new post-ADC coalition should, as a matter of necessity, extend the deadline for collection and submission of forms, and their screening dates staggered accordingly as long as such extensions fall within INEC's political party activities timetable.

Conclusion

The 2027 General Elections, especially the Presidential Ballot, shall be akin to a penalty own goal for both the ruling APC and the consolidated opposition now led by the NDC. One fatal misstep by APC in the last mile of the race will make the ruling party lose the presidential race to the opposition. In the same vein, one last mile error in opposition's roadmap shall cost it the presidential victory, paving way for the second term return of APC to summit power. The high aspirant fees and levies currently governing the NDC and LP workbooks, the parties' respective deadlines for submission of forms and NDC's subsequent choke-notice screening are one misstep a wit too early, and should be revisited.

In the letter and spirit of the common commitment to save democracy in our fatherland, 

I am

Comrade Prince Tony Akeni Le Moin

National Convener,

Nigeria Cannot Continue Like This (NCC-LIT),

Save Democracy Mega Alliance (SDMA).

INEC ASKS FOR SUBMISSION OF POLITICAL PARTIES' MEMBERSHIP REGISTERS

 

The Nigeria's Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has in a press statement on Saturday asked for the fresh summation of political parties membership registers.

According to the electoral umpire, 22 registered political parties have successfully submitted their membership registers to the Commission in compliance with the Electoral Act 2026. 

The submission followed the extension granted by the Commission after political parties raised concerns during a meeting on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, regarding the timeline provided in the Revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2027 General Election. The Commission is pleased to note that all registered parties submitted their registers as of 8th May 2026, two days before the extended deadline.

PRESS STATEMENT 

SUBMISSION OF POLITICAL PARTIES' MEMBERSHIP REGISTERS

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) wishes to inform Nigerians and stakeholders in the electoral process that all 22 registered political parties have successfully submitted their membership registers to the Commission in compliance with the Electoral Act 2026. The submission followed the extension granted by the Commission after political parties raised concerns during a meeting on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, regarding the timeline provided in the Revised Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2027 General Election. The Commission is pleased to note that all registered parties submitted their registers as of 8th May 2026, two days before the extended deadline.

Following a meeting with political parties, the Commission, in a press statement issued on the 27th of March 2026, adjusted the deadline for the submission of party registers from 21st April 2026 to 10th May 2026 to align with the provisions of Section 77(4) of the Electoral Act 2026 and the actual dates fixed by political parties for their primaries. Political parties were accordingly allowed to conduct their primaries within the approved period from 23rd April 2026 to 30th May 2026, while the register of party members was required to be submitted to the Commission not later than 21 days before the conduct of their respective primaries.

INEC wishes to state that all registered political parties complied with the requirement within the extended timeframe and will subject the submitted registers to the necessary verification processes in line with the law. The Commission remains committed to the conduct of free, fair, credible and inclusive elections.

Mohammed Kudu HarunaChairman, Information and Voter Education Committee15th May, 2026

₦20 Trillion Is Missing From Nigeria's Federation Account - Olisa Agbakoba

I want to ask Nigerians one simple question, and I want us to actually answer it together: WHERE DOES OUR MONEY GO?

T

he money you collectively earn as a country, every kobo of oil revenue, every customs duty, every company tax, every regulatory fee, and every court fine. The money that supposedly funds our roads, schools, hospitals, and police.

Most Nigerians do not know this, so let me start with something that may shock you: Nigeria has a special bank account. It is called the FEDERATION ACCOUNT. The 1999 Constitution created it in Section 162. Every kobo of revenue the federal government collects on behalf of Nigeria is supposed to flow into that one account. Then it is shared among the federal government, the 36 states, and the 774 local governments according to a sharing formula.

That is the law. That is what the Constitution actually says.

In 2025 alone, according to the World Bank's Nigeria Development Update, ₦14.94 TRILLION of federation revenue was "deducted" before it ever reached the Federation Account. That is 39% — nearly two-fifths — of what Nigeria earned, gone before any state or LGA saw a single kobo.

In 2024, NNPCL — Nigeria's biggest revenue generator — was supposed to remit ₦1.1 trillion to the Federation Account. It remitted ₦600 billion. Where is the ₦500 billion?

There is currently an active FAAC investigation into allegations that NNPCL under-remitted $42.37 BILLION between 2011 and 2017. At today's exchange rate, that is roughly ₦12.91 trillion. For perspective, that is more than our entire 2024 federal budget. From one company. Over six years. And remember, these are just the leakages we know about.

MEANWHILE, WE ARE DROWNING IN DEBT

Nigeria's total public debt at the end of 2025 was ₦159.27 TRILLION (Debt Management Office, February 2026). In 2023, debt service consumed 78% of federal revenue. In 2024, it consumed 69%. The IMF and World Bank recommend countries keep debt service to 30–40% of revenue. We are nearly double that benchmark. Out of every ₦1 the federal government earned last year, almost 70 kobo went to paying back loans. That leaves 30 kobo for everything else: hospitals, schools, roads, police, military, civil service salaries, infrastructure, and security— for 220 million Nigerians.

And what are we borrowing for? In large part, we are borrowing to fund services that our OWN revenues — if they actually reached the Federation Account — should be funding. Let that sink in. We are borrowing money, at interest, to replace money we already earned but never collected properly.

This is why fuel is expensive. This is why school fees doubled. This is why your salary buys less every month. This is why hospitals have no drugs. This is why universities are always on strike. This is not corruption in the abstract. This is a constitutional account that has been broken for 25 years.

Section 162 of the Constitution created the Federation Account in 1999. But the Constitution did not say:

• Who is supposed to keep the account safely?

• How quickly money must be remitted after collection

• Who audits the account?

• What happens if you steal from it?

• Whether the public is allowed to see the records

Twenty-five years of silence on these questions has allowed every kind of administrative trick to take root. Agencies deduct "management fees" before remitting. NNPCL retains "costs" before paying in. Some agencies open unauthorised sub-accounts. Some collect cash and never remit. The 2023 House of Representatives investigation found that ₦8.7 trillion passed through the Treasury Single Account but agencies had proliferated unauthorised parallel accounts the whole time.

The Minister of Finance HERSELF admitted in 2024 that until August of that year, the federal government could not fully see its own balance sheet. Read that line again. In 2024, the people running the country could not see all the money the country had.

I know somebody will ask this in the replies, so let me address it now.

The Treasury Single Account was introduced in 2015 by Dr. Okonjo-Iweala as Finance Minister. It was a well-intentioned reform — consolidate government accounts, reduce leakage. And for a few years, it helped reduce the number of MDA bank accounts.

But here is the problem: the TSA is NOT in the Constitution. It was an executive memo. A circular. It can be undone tomorrow by any President. And worse, it covers Federal Government cash management — it does NOT solve the constitutional problem of revenues belonging to states and LGAs being deducted before they reach the Federation Account. The TSA addressed symptoms. It did not cure the disease. Hence ₦14.94 trillion still vanished in 2025 — a decade after the TSA was introduced.

Dr Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) released a policy paper this month titled "Where Is Our Money? Nigeria's Federation Account Crisis and the Case for Reform." I have read it. You should read it too.

The proposed fix is honestly so straightforward that it is almost insulting that we have not done it already.

Drop your thoughts below. Tag your senator. Tag your governor. Share this with one person who does not know.

#WhereIsOurMoney #Section162

Source: Dr Olisa Agbakoba Legal Policy Paper, April 2026 — "Where Is Our Money? Nigeria's Federation Account Crisis and the Case for Reform.

#PHOTOSPEAKS: DR PETER AGADA SUBMITS HIS PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION FORM @LQBOUR PARTY NATIONAL OFFICE, ABUJA

 

PRESS CONFERENCE SPEECH DELIVERED BY APAGUN OLAOLU SAMUEL, OGUN STATE LABOUR PARTY CHAIRMAN AT LABOUR PARTY SECRETARIAT, ABUJA AFTER SUBMISSION OF PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION FORM BY ARC. [DR.] PETER AGADA

Apagun 

Good afternoon, members of the press.

Thank you for being here. Moments ago, Arc. Dr. Peter Agada formally submitted his nomination form to contest for the presidency of the Federal Republic of Nigeria under the Labour Party in the upcoming general elections.

This submission is not about ceremony. It’s about a decision that millions of Nigerians have already made in their hearts: for a clean break from the past, a clear severance from the political oligarchist, and a recalibration of Nigeria political system. That it is time for competence, integrity, credibility, capacity, by reason of a strategic workable plan, and a government that works for the people, through those who knows what, when and how to do the work at the right time, for full benefits of all. 

*Why Dr. Agada?*

Dr. Agada comes from the Middle Belt, the food basket, geographic epicenter, and cultural heart of Nigeria. The Middle Belt knows what it means to hold this country together when tensions rise. It is a region of farmers, teachers, engineers, and traders who want nothing more than peace to work and a government that works to protects that peace. 

As an architect and academic, Dr. Agada has spent his career solving real problems with limited resources, equipped with residual power of imagination. He understands that governance is design work: if the foundation is weak, no amount of painting will make the building stand. That is why he is running, to reengineer the political and economic structure of Nigeria.

*The agenda for Nigeria*

1. *A productive economy*: We will prioritize infrastructural development by fixing power, roads, rails, and ports so that Nigerian businesses can run, produce and compete. The goal is jobs, not handouts. SMEs will get access to credit without needing a godfather.

2. *Security with accountability*: No economy grows where farmers abandon their farms and children cannot go to school safely. Our security plan is intelligence-driven, community-based, and fully audited. No more blank checks with no results

3. *Education and health as public goods*: Dr. Agada was taught in Nigerian universities. He knows firsthand how underfunded systems break the country’s future. We will treat teachers, lecturers, and health workers as national priorities, not afterthoughts.

4. *Unity through equity*: The Middle Belt has paid the price for Nigeria’s divisions. Our government will not play ethnic or religious politics. Appointments, projects, and policies will follow one test: does it move Nigeria forward for all Nigerians?

5. *Transparent governance*: Nigerians are tired of vague promises. Every major policy will be published with its cost, timeline, and expected outcome. If we fall short, we will say why.

*Next steps*

Over the next weeks we will roll out detailed plans on agriculture, manufacturing, power reform, and youth innovation. We will hold town halls in every zone because Nigeria is too big to be governed from one office in Abuja.

To the press: Ask us the hard questions. We welcome scrutiny because we have nothing to hide.

To Nigerians: Arc. Dr. Peter Agada is not promising miracles. He is promising a government that respects you, your rights, your talent, your time, your money, and your intelligence. A government that treats the Middle Belt, the North, the South, the East, and the West as one country with one SECURED FUTURE.

The form has been submitted. The work begins now. NOW IS THE TIME FOR YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN THIS CHARIOT!

Thank you.

2027 Elections: Dr Peter Agada Obtains Labour Party's Presidential Nomination Form (PHOTOS)

 Architect (Dr) Peter Agada today officially obtained the Presidential Nomination form of the opposition Labour Party (LP).