The New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) has rejected calls to backdate the resignation of elected officials who left its platform without completing the required procedures, warning that falsifying party records could amount to a criminal offence.
The party also cautioned individuals allegedly approaching members of its leadership to facilitate the backdating of resignation documents, insisting that it would not yield to pressure to alter its records.
The NNPP Founder and Chairman of its Board of Trustees, Dr Boniface Aniebonam, stated this in a statement issued on Sunday while responding to reports that some elected officials affected by the party’s recent correspondence with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had approached its leadership over their resignation records.
The party had, in a letter dated October 19, informed INEC that Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf, two senators, 18 members of the House of Representatives and 28 members of the Kano State House of Assembly, who were elected on its platform in 2023, had allegedly failed to fulfil the party’s constitutional requirements for resignation.
The letter, jointly signed by NNPP National Chairman, Dr Agbo Major, and its General Secretary, Mr Oginni Olaposi, stated that the affected officials had engaged in political activities under other parties and were seeking to contest the 2027 general elections without completing the prescribed resignation procedures.
Aniebonam said the party had advised those who approached its leadership to return to their respective wards and commence the resignation process properly, ensuring that all necessary documentation was completed in accordance with the NNPP constitution.
“We are not scheming for any member to return, but the right process must be followed to the letter. We believe in the rights of people to choose where they wish to belong, but it must be properly documented as required by law,” he said.
He cited provisions of the NNPP Constitution, 2023, as amended, and the Electoral Act, 2026, as amended, arguing that party membership and resignation procedures must be observed consistently.
According to him, the party would not alter its records to accommodate individuals who failed to follow the prescribed process before the October 19 letter was sent to INEC.
The NNPP founder said the party might update its correspondence to the electoral commission to include other elected officials in Katsina and Jigawa states who allegedly had not completed their resignation procedures.
He added that the party intended to retain documentary evidence of its membership records in case the issue became the subject of post-election litigation.
“In the event of a post-election lawsuit by their opponents requiring NNPP to come with records of their resignation, we will do so,” he said.
Aniebonam argued that some politicians who claim to have resigned from their former parties often submit resignation letters at ward level without ensuring that the documents are properly recorded at the national secretariat.
He maintained that the party’s national secretary was responsible for keeping its membership register and that claims of resignation should be supported by appropriate documentation.
The NNPP founder also criticised the practice of elected officials announcing their departure from political parties during legislative plenary sessions without ensuring that the required procedures had been completed.
He said the party considered such practices an abuse of political and electoral processes and maintained that individuals who had not validly terminated their membership could face questions over their eligibility to contest elections on another party’s platform.
Aniebonam, however, said members expelled from the NNPP, including Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso and Elder Buba Galadima, were exempt from the current resignation dispute.
The party also said it had secured favourable decisions from the Abia State High Court in Uzuakoli, the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja and the Court of Appeal in Owerri concerning its recognition by INEC, its original logo and its participation in the 2027 elections.
The NNPP maintained that any former member whose resignation could not be substantiated by valid records risked being treated as still belonging to the party for electoral purposes.
The position comes amid continuing political realignments ahead of the 2027 general elections, as elected officials and political parties navigate disputes over membership, defections and eligibility to contest under different platforms.
Source: Politics Archives – New Telegraph
