By Achile Danjuma
The Social Democratic Party and the Inter-Party Advisory Council on Friday have insisted on having “transparent electoral laws” that will deliver good governance through free, fair and credible elections in 2027.
Both SDP and IPAC stated that there was the need to review the Electoral Act, 2026, especially issues relating to indirect primaries and mandatory electronic transmission of results.
The parties stated this while clarifying the purpose of their recent closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, stating that the engagement focused on strengthening Nigeria’s democratic process ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The explanation was given when party leaders and other opposition figures were hosted in Abuja by the SDP’s former presidential candidate, Adewole Adebayo on Friday.
Speaking during the gathering, the National Chairman of the SDP, Prof Sadiq Gombe, said the meeting with the president was held on Wednesday following an invitation from the presidency and lasted about an hour.
He explained that the discussion centred on the need to strengthen electoral laws and restore public confidence in the country’s electoral process.
Gombe said, “It was an hour to sit with the President and remind him about the need to have a transparent free, fair and credible election in 2027.
“Democracy, from its definition, is the government of the people, by the people and for the people. I think it is the government’s responsibility to listen to Nigerians and do the needful by having transparent electoral laws that can guarantee and usher in good governance.
“I want to use this opportunity to reiterate that we in the SDP are always for democracy and we will ever remain democrats. So, we are calling on the government and particularly members of our National Assembly to heed the cries of Nigerians.”
The SDP chair also expressed concerns that the voters’ apathy witnessed at the just concluded Federal Capital Territory Area Council poll was a testament that Nigerians were gradually losing hope in the electoral process.