2027: NDC moves to curb defections of party public office holders

THE Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has introduced a new measure aimed at discouraging political defections by requiring its governorship and National Assembly candidates to sign indemnity forms committing to vacate their seats if they leave the party after winning elections.

The move was unveiled by the party’s National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas, during the signing ceremony attended by aspirants and candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections at the party’s National Secretariat.

Cleopas said the policy was part of the party’s commitment to enforcing internal discipline and strengthening what he described as the principle of party supremacy.

He argued that the NDC, which was registered earlier this year, was founded to build a lasting political institution rather than a platform driven by individual ambitions.

According to him, the party had studied the experiences of political organisations in Nigeria and other countries and identified frequent defections by elected officials as one of the major factors weakening political parties.

He lamented situations where politicians secure electoral victories on the platform of a party only to abandon it after assuming office, saying such actions undermine party development and democratic accountability.

“People contest elections under political parties and when they are privileged to win, they become gods,” Cleopas said. “They will look for one excuse and dump the platform that brought them to office.”

The NDC chairman cited the experience of the Labour Party, arguing that many elected officials who won on its platform had since left the party, weakening its political influence.

Cleopas maintained that while the Nigerian Constitution guarantees freedom of association, individuals seeking elective office under the NDC must accept the party’s internal rules before contesting.

He said the indemnity forms would require candidates who defect after winning elections on the party’s platform to relinquish the mandate obtained through the NDC.

“If you contest election under our platform and you win, under no circumstance should you wake up one day and say you don’t like the party anymore and walk away with the mandate,” he said.

“If you choose to leave, relinquish the mandate upon which you won the election. Drop it and go anywhere you want because it is a party mandate.”

Cleopas stressed that candidates were not being compelled to join the party, but those seeking its tickets must agree to the condition that elected mandates belong to the political platform rather than the individual office holder.

Also speaking, the party’s National Legal Adviser, Barrister Reuben Egwuaba, defended the policy on constitutional grounds.

Egwuaba argued that political parties are voluntary associations governed by rules accepted by their members. He said Section 222 of the 1999 Constitution recognises the role of political parties in Nigeria’s electoral process and described candidates as agents of their political parties.

According to him, judicial precedents have established that votes cast during elections belong primarily to political parties, which explains why courts can declare a different individual as the rightful winner where a party’s nominated candidate is found to have been improperly selected.

He noted that in several cases, courts had ordered the issuance of certificates of return to individuals who did not participate in the general election but were deemed the lawful candidates of their parties following legal disputes over nominations.

The NDC said the indemnity forms are part of broader reforms aimed at entrenching party discipline and preventing the wave of defections that has characterised Nigeria’s political landscape in recent years.