Electoral Act 2026 Designed to Weaken Opposition Parties – Buba Galadima

Buba Galadima, secretary of the Board of Trustees of the New Nigeria People’s Party, has alleged that the Electoral Act 2026 was deliberately designed to frustrate opposition parties in Nigeria.

Speaking at the Nigeria Democratic Congress aspirants’ summit in Abuja on Saturday, Galadima accused the administration of Bola Tinubu of undermining democracy in the country.

According to him, the ruling All Progressives Congress had already prepared a draft of the electoral legislation before it was formally presented to the National Assembly.

Galadima questioned the speed with which the bill was signed into law by the president after it was passed by lawmakers.

“By the time the National Assembly concluded deliberations on the electoral bill, the president signed it within an hour. Did he truly study the bill? That shows the document had already been prepared beforehand,” he said.

He criticised aspects of the law dealing with the emergence of party candidates, noting that it only allows candidates to emerge through consensus arrangements or direct primaries.

Galadima claimed the APC believed opposition parties would struggle to agree on consensus candidates and would therefore be forced into direct primaries.

According to him, opposition parties risk internal crises and disruptions if they adopt direct primaries ahead of the 2027 elections.

He advised members of the Nigeria Democratic Congress to embrace consensus arrangements instead, warning that conducting direct primaries could leave the party without candidates.

Galadima further described the NDC as one of the strongest opposition platforms capable of challenging the APC in the next general election.

He urged party members to remain united and support whichever candidates emerge through agreements reached by party leaders and stakeholders.