KOWA Party says INEC acted like a political assassin by deregistering it

The KOWA Party has condemned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for including it in the list of the deregistered political parties in the country.

In a statement signed by its Acting National Chairman, Comrade Mark Adebayo, the party said the Yakubu Mahmood led electoral body acted like a political assassin by deregistering it.

INEC on Thursday announced that it had deregistered 74 political parties, and that its action was in line with the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as well as the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

But Adebayo said in his statement that the “purported’ deregistration was tantamount to “a political assassination.”

He added that the “act of illegality in deregistering a party that has an elected councilor to the knowledge of the Independent National Electoral Commission” is disappointing.

Adebayo said the Kowa Party’s disappointment was more aggravated because “we wrote to INEC about seven months ago informing the commission that the party won a councillorship seat in Amosu Ward of Okigwe LGA of Imo State. We have the acknowledgement copy of that letter in our custody.

“Despite that, INEC went ahead and behaved like a political assassin to deregister the party. KOWA Party is not new to winning elections. We won election to the Bayelsa House of Assembly in 2011. The party has been participating actively in all INEC elections. In 2019 alone, the party sponsored almost 200 candidates in various capacities for the general elections.

“According to the amended clause that deals with deregistration of political Parties, if a party wins a ward in a local government election, it cannot be deregistered by INEC. Why it then went ahead to include KOWA Party among deregistered parties is something that the commission has to explain.

READ ALSO: INEC deregisters 74 political parties

“We will take all necessary legal actions to redress this dangerous threat to Nigeria’s democratic development. It is also an affront to the rule of law because KOWA Party is among 33 political parties that took INEC to court on this matter and the case was adjourned to the 17th of February. But INEC took a precipitate action to deregister political parties before then. It’s action is not only ultra vires but also in contempt of court.”

Adebayo went further to note that the KOWA party is not among political parties that don’t have party headquarter offices in Abuja as required by law.

“We have our headquarters office in Abuja where INEC came to do the last verification exercise on December 5th, 2019. The party has structures in 35 states of the federation and the FCT, Abuja,” he added..

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