2027 Elections: NNPP ADOPTS CONSENSUS FOR CANDIDATES, PARDONS EXPELLED MEMBERS

2027 Elections: NNPP Adopts Consensus for Candidates, Pardons Expelled Members

By Babatunde Aremu

The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) will adopt consensus to pick its candidates for the 2027 general elections, the party’s founder, Dr. Boniface Aniebonam, has said.

Aniebonam, who is also Chairman of the Board of Trustees, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday in Lagos. He added that the party has granted a general pardon to all expelled members and will re-admit them.

“It is an established fact that some primary elections in Nigeria have denied very credible candidates from participating in general elections to test their popularity,” Aniebonam said.

“We shall avoid this scenario in accordance with our resolutions during our last convention in Lagos to adopt the principles of consensus candidates to bring out our best candidates rather than money politics.”

He called on Nigerians committed to “a new Nigeria” who may not want to spend heavily on primaries to come forward. Women aspirants, he said, will enjoy free nomination forms and pay only administrative costs.

“Aside from our elected members in their various states who are entitled to automatic tickets, the tickets for presidential and other elective positions are open for contest but the best person will be picked via consensus,” he stated.

Aniebonam reaffirmed the party’s decision at its last Lagos convention to give automatic tickets to all elected members in executive and legislative positions for 2027, “despite the misdemeanours of some members.”

On the pardon, he said: “By virtue of the inherent powers conferred upon me by the NNPP constitution as founder and chairman, board of trustees in council, I hereby declare a general pardon for all members who have acted unconstitutionally due to the unmerited influence of certain individuals.”

He said affected members deceived by the “defunct National Working Committee” are free to return but must report to the NWC under Dr. Agbo Major to pledge allegiance.

“Those who may have defected to other parties due to escalated court cases can still return immediately to beat the time limit of the new Electoral Act and INEC guidelines,” Aniebonam added.

He noted that the Screening Committee, in consultation with the National Chairman and Secretary General, must approve the re-admission of expelled members

“to ensure safety and peace of the happy family.”

Aniebonam said he would continue to oversee the party “in accordance with the judgment of the Appeal Court, Owerri,” and urged members not to worry about INEC’s delay in uploading the party’s elected NWC members and original logo. “The order of the court to upload our NWC members is extant and supreme,” he said.

He warned incoming members to properly resign from any other party to avoid violating the Electoral Act, which forbids dual membership.

“All new members must ensure that their resignation is properly documented and withdrawn both manually and electronically,” he added.