Kwankwasiyya Supporters Protest In Kano, Petition INEC Over Omission of NDC Gov Candidate

Supporters of the Kwankwasiyya Movement on Friday protested in Kano State over the alleged omission of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) governorship candidate in the 2027 general elections from the list released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The protesters, led by the deputy governorship candidate, Mustapha Kwankwaso, on behalf of the candidate, Aminu Gwarzo, marched to the INEC state office and submitted a formal petition demanding the reinstatement of their candidate.

Kwankwaso said the group had fulfilled all rules and regulations laid down by the commission regarding the nomination of candidates, describing the exclusion as unjust.

Addressing the protesters, the INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner in Kano, Abdu Zango, said the commission had noted the reason for the omission and that there was still a window for appeal until October 24.

“Basically, what they came to do is to present a complaint about the omission of their candidates. Luckily, INEC has made the point very clear, the reason for the omission and the fact that there is a window of appeal that has been provided up to the 24th of October,” Zango said.

“We received all the complaints and assured the delegation that their petition will receive the necessary attention and we are going to forward it to our national headquarters for consideration. As far as we are concerned in Kano here, we are very neutral,” he added.

Zango commended the group for adopting a peaceful and orderly approach in presenting their grievance rather than resorting to violence.

He also spoke on the ongoing Permanent Voter Card (PVC) collection, which commenced on October 9, expressing satisfaction with the turnout so far and assuring that collection points would be extended to registration areas to make it easier for citizens.

The Kwankwasiyya Movement has on Sunday expressed concern over the omission.

The movement maintained that Gwarzo had registered with the NDC within the stipulated period and said it was unaware of any court case or judicial order identified as the basis for his omission.

The group also drew attention to Section 32(2) of the Electoral Act 2026, which it said provides a 14-day window for a political party to notify INEC in writing, accompanied by an affidavit, where the name of its nominated candidate is missing.

It urged the NDC and the candidate’s legal representatives to examine the provision and pursue the necessary steps to seek rectification, where applicable.