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| Voters at polling units during Nigeria’s general elections on 25 February 2023. Photo: Ibukun Emiola/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. |
Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) chieftain Patrice Akwara has said any decision to postpone the 2027 elections on health grounds must rest on verifiable evidence of an emergency, as his party continues preparations under the existing electoral timetable.
Speaking on Arise News, Akwara said the party had received no indication from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that the elections would move. He said its presidential ticket and other candidates were continuing campaigns and town hall meetings.
Prime 9ja Online reports that Akwara distinguished between responding to a genuine public health crisis and allowing concerns about Ebola to become a reason for disrupting the electoral process without sufficient justification.
His comments followed a warning by the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), Dr Jide Idris, that a sufficiently widespread outbreak could create public health concerns affecting the elections.
Idris nevertheless said there was no immediate reason to postpone voting. During his 26 October appearance on Channels Television, he also said a postponement decision fell outside his authority and rejected suggestions that health officials would use disease control for political purposes, according to TheCable’s report.
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| Trainees practise handling a mannequin during a CDC training exercise for Ebola response in 2014. File photo: CDC/Cleopatra Adedeji. |
INEC’s published calendar continues to list 16 January 2027 for the presidential and National Assembly elections, followed by governorship and state assembly elections on 6 February.
The commission’s chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, has also reaffirmed that preparations remain on schedule. The Punch reported that he ruled out changing the timetable during an engagement with electoral officials in Port Harcourt on Saturday.
Akwara said the NDC was organising its activities around those commitments. He expressed confidence in the party’s campaign preparations, adding that “we can't wait to defeat this government”.
Asked whether the ruling party might exploit health concerns to prolong its stay in office or disrupt opposition campaigns, he said he was not presently approaching the situation with that expectation.
He nevertheless said opposition parties and civil society organisations would scrutinise the government’s actions and insist that it respect INEC’s independence.
Akwara also pointed to international scrutiny of a possible health emergency, saying that “the international community is also watching”.
He argued that a crisis serious enough to prevent voting would require an assessment involving the relevant health and electoral authorities. The evidence, he said, should make clear why a change was necessary, rather than leave the decision open to political convenience.
On the party’s present outlook, he said that “we are not entertaining any fear whatsoever”.
The legal provision governing emergency postponements is Section 24 of the Electoral Act 2026. It permits INEC to postpone an election where a serious breach of the peace is likely or where natural disasters or other emergencies make conducting it impossible.
The section requires a cogent and verifiable reason for postponement and directs the commission to appoint another date for the affected area or areas. It also requires INEC, as far as practicable, to protect people displaced by an emergency from disenfranchisement.
The available health records distinguish the confirmed infection from the people undergoing monitoring after possible exposure.
In its 29 October situation report, the NCDC recorded one confirmed Ebola case and 62 contacts linked to that patient. It reported no secondary confirmed infection.
The agency said the patient, a woman with a recent travel history to Uganda, tested positive in Abuja on 20 October and subsequently underwent medical evacuation to Switzerland on 26 October. Contact tracing and follow-up continued after her departure.
A subsequent NCDC statement dated 31 October said two suspected cases investigated in Adamawa State had tested negative after two rounds of laboratory testing. The agency maintained that the previously confirmed Abuja patient remained Nigeria’s only laboratory-confirmed case.
During the interview, Akwara also challenged the government’s decision to approve ₦10 billion for emergency preparedness, questioning its spending priorities against the condition of primary healthcare facilities.
He described communities where, in his assessment, patients faced inadequate facilities, shortages of basic medicines and poorly motivated health workers. He argued that the government needed to address those existing problems alongside preparations for possible outbreaks.
Akwara suggested that a large emergency allocation could create opportunities for political misuse. He did not identify a specific payment or recipient in making that allegation during the interview.
The Presidency’s announcement of 9 June said President Bola Tinubu had approved the funding and ordered its immediate release to strengthen preparedness and support public health emergency operations.
The same announcement established a Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, chaired by Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila. Its responsibilities included coordinating measures involving health agencies, airports, immigration authorities and states with international entry points.
Idris has separately explained that the allocation was intended to support responses to Ebola and other diseases, including Lassa fever.
In remarks reported by Premium Times, he identified surveillance, laboratory testing, screening and contact tracing among the activities requiring resources. He also cited protective equipment, laboratory supplies, operational costs and repairs to isolation facilities.
His explanation described the fund’s intended public health uses, including preparations for other disease outbreaks.
Akwara maintained that Nigerians should scrutinise the administration’s performance across healthcare, transport, food security, social protection and public safety.
He said the opposition would continue holding the government accountable while preparing for the elections, and urged voters to “use the ballot to remove them from office”.