The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed allegations by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that it granted a rival faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) access to its candidate nomination portal.

The electoral commission maintained that it only recognises the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the ADC led by former Senate President David Mark, insisting that no access credentials were issued to the faction headed by Nafiu Gombe.

The clarification followed accusations by Atiku’s Media Office that INEC had enabled Gombe’s faction to upload candidates’ names despite officially recognising the David Mark-led leadership.

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A senior INEC official, who spoke anonymously with Punch, said the commission’s actions remain guided by the Constitution, the Electoral Act and its established regulations.

The official stressed that INEC’s records recognise David Mark as the National Chairman of the ADC, while former Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, is listed as the party’s National Secretary.

“INEC did not give access codes to Nafiu Gombe as claimed by Atiku’s Media Office. INEC operates based on the legal framework guiding elections and the electoral system in Nigeria,” the official said.

He added that the commission’s portal reflects the recognised leadership of the party.

“So, based on that, the recognised leadership of ADC, according to our records, is that of the Senator David Mark-led leadership. If you go to our portal right now, Senator David Mark is the chairman of the ADC, while Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola is the secretary,” the source stated.

INEC further maintained that Gombe has no legal authority to upload the names of candidates because he is not recognised by the commission as the party’s national chairman.

According to the official, neither Gombe nor anyone associated with his faction received nomination portal access from the commission.

“It’s as good as saying that Nafiu Gombe cannot upload the names of candidates on the INEC portal because he is not the officially recognised chairman of the ADC,” the official explained.

“Gombe, or any of his agents, aides or close allies, did not get any access codes from INEC to upload names of candidates. In fact, the question is, which portal did they upload the names? INEC does not recognise anything from Nafiu Gombe.”

The official reiterated that only the recognised leadership of the party could access the commission’s candidate nomination platform.

INEC also dismissed claims that its Chairman, Professor Joash Amupitan, was interfering in the internal affairs of opposition parties or attempting to weaken them ahead of the 2027 general election.

Atiku’s media team had alleged that the commission was assisting efforts to destabilise the opposition and advance President Bola Tinubu’s political interests.

Responding to the accusation, the official described the claims as unfounded.

“The allegation by Atiku’s Media Office that Amupitan is trying to weaken opposition parties is a baseless allegation,” the source said.

“The attempt to drag Amupitan into political parties’ internal crisis is an exercise in futility.”

The official argued that the disputes currently affecting the ADC are internal party matters and not the responsibility of the electoral commission.

“Amupitan did not go to court. Amupitan did not drag Nafiu Gombe to court and Amupitan did not drag the David Mark-led ADC to court; it’s a party crisis, so why are they trying to drag Amupitan into it?” the official asked.

The commission maintained that its position regarding the ADC leadership remains unchanged and advised political actors to address their internal disagreements through appropriate legal and party mechanisms.

“The allegations are baseless. They should rather focus on strengthening their party than blaming Amupitan for their problems,” the official said.

Reaffirming the commission’s stance, the source added that Nafiu Gombe remains unrecognised by INEC and has no authority to access or use the candidate nomination portal for the submission of names ahead of future elections.