Our Reporter, Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has described the digital membership register requirement in the Electoral Act 2026 as a “trap set for the opposition,” warning that the provision could restrict political participation and undermine multiparty democracy.
Speaking on The Morning Show on Arise Television, the party’s spokesperson, Mr. Kenneth Okonkwo, said although the ADC supports technological reforms, the conditions attached to the new requirement are designed to cage political parties.
At the centre of the controversy is Section 77 of the Electoral Act 2026, which mandates political parties to maintain a comprehensive digital register of members, including names, addresses, local government areas and National Identification Numbers (NIN). The law further requires parties to submit the register to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at least 21 days before conducting primaries.
It also provides that only individuals whose names appear in the submitted register can vote or be voted for in party primaries, while any party that fails to comply risks losing the right to field candidates.
Okonkwo argued that the combined effect of these provisions creates deliberate obstacles for opposition parties.
“You can see the traps,” he said.
“Anybody whose name is not written in the register cannot vote or be voted for. And any political party that does not submit that register is not eligible to field candidates.”
He maintained that the ADC is not opposed to digitalisation itself but to what he described as an unrealistic timeline and punitive consequences.
“Our resistance is not in digitalising. Our resistance is in the time available to do that,” Okonkwo stated.
“If you come one month to when we want to do something, and you’re telling us we must do it or we’ll lose our eligibility to contest, that is where the problem lies.”
According to him, while older parties may have had years to develop digital infrastructure, newer or restructured parties could face serious administrative and technical hurdles in meeting the requirements within a compressed timeframe.
He further alleged that the provision could prevent aggrieved aspirants from seeking alternative political platforms after disputed primaries, thereby limiting political mobility and competition.
Beyond raising concerns, Okonkwo insisted that the Electoral Act 2026 is not beyond amendment.
“There is nothing that is impossible,” he said.
“Everything can be done if the will is there. Within one week, it can be done.”
He cited past legislative reversals and urgent constitutional amendments as evidence that rapid changes are feasible when political leaders are determined.
“In order to save this country, within one month, the Constitution was amended,” he recalled, referencing the amendment of Section 145 during the illness of former President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
“So, there is nothing that is even very, very difficult to amend if they will hear the voice of reason.”
Okonkwo argued that electoral reforms should strengthen democracy rather than narrow political space.
“The whole idea of amendment of laws is to cure mischief,” he said.
“But the amendment of laws under the APC is to create mischief.”
As political parties prepare for the next election cycle, the digital membership register requirement has emerged as a key point of contention, with the ADC urging lawmakers to revisit the provision to ensure that technological reforms do not become instruments of exclusion.
