A coalition of indigenous groups and long-term residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has called on the new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Joash Amupitan, to begin preparations for a governorship election in Abuja.
The demand, issued by the FCT Senior Citizens Forum during a press briefing on Thursday, is based on a recent Court of Appeal judgment that declared Abuja should be accorded a status equivalent to a state.
The group’s Coordinator, Elder Danjuma Tanko Dara, stated that the ruling must be fully implemented. “The recent judgment of the Court of Appeal is not a mere legal opinion; it is a binding pronouncement that has clarified the constitutional standing of the FCT,” he said.
Elder Dara argued that residents have been denied a fundamental democratic right. “For too long, the citizens of Abuja have been treated as second-class voters, participating in presidential elections but denied the fundamental right to elect their own chief executive and legislative assembly for the territory. This democratic deficit ends now,” he declared.
The coalition issued a direct appeal to the new INEC chairman, urging immediate action, stating: “We call on Barr. Joash Amupitan, as a distinguished Senior Advocate of Nigeria and a man known for his integrity, to hit the ground running. His first major task, beyond the general elections, must be to set in motion the machinery for the FCT Governorship Election.”
The group also called on President Bola Tinubu to rename the current FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, as the “Sole Administrator” to complete his tenure, thereby paving the way for an elected governor in the next cycle.
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