Former Minister, Pantami spoke tough, giving three days for INEC to include his name in the list of governors

Former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof Isa Ali Pantami, has taken a firm stand against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for not including his name in the final list of governorship candidates in Gombe state.

Therefore, he has given the commission an ultimatum of three days to cancel the decision.

Pantami, through his lawyers, Ahmed Raji & Co., accused the commission of unlawfully removing his name from the list published on October 10, 2026, even though he emerged as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the new primaries.

In a letter dated October 12, 2026 addressed to the INEC Chairman, the law firm asked the KPU to announce Pantami’s name as the PDP gubernatorial candidate within three days.

Principal counsel, Ahmed Raji, SAN, said Pantami emerged victorious in the fresh primaries held by the party on September 29, 2026, following a court order directing the PDP to conduct another exercise.

According to the letter, Pantami, a registered member of the PDP in Pantami Area of ​​Gombe State, purchased his party’s Expression of Interest and Nomination form, underwent screening and qualified to contest.

The lawyer stated that he initially won the party’s gubernatorial primaries held on May 26, 2026, after which the PDP submitted his personal data, including Form EC9, to INEC on August 8, 2026.

The Commission then announced his name on August 29, 2026, in accordance with Article 29(3) of the Election Law 2026, the letter added.

However, the early primaries were challenged in two lawsuits filed at the Federal High Court in Gombe, with plaintiffs questioning Pantami’s membership in the party.

Raji said the court, in a ruling delivered on September 24, 2026, resolved the membership issue in Pantami’s favor.

“In the second lawsuit, the court also decided that the omission of Pantami’s name in the tendered evidence was not conclusive evidence that Pantami was not a member.

“Membership of a political party is usually an internal matter of that party,” reads part of the letter.

The lawyers explained that although the court annulled the May 26 primary election due to issues relating to its conduct, the court directed the PDP to convene a new meeting within 30 days.

The order, according to the letter, requires the party to give all waived candidates the May 14, 2026, opportunity to participate in new primaries.

The law firm stated that the PDP complied with the directive, notified INEC and conducted fresh primaries on September 29, 2026, under the supervision of the commission.
Pantami was again declared the winner of the exercise, he said.

As a result, the lawyers faulted INEC for excluding his name from the final list of gubernatorial candidates published on October 10, 2026, without providing any explanation for the decision.

Demanding immediate action, the firm said its client had instructed it to formally request the commission to correct the omissions before the deadline.

The lawyers urged INEC to immediately take steps to address the issue and provide written confirmation of the action taken to resolve the complaint.