Former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Pantami, has demanded that the Independent National Electoral Commission include his name in the final list of candidates for the 2027 Gombe State governorship election.
In a letter dated October 12, 2026, his lawyers, Ahmed Raji & Co., gave the commission three days to address the omission. According to Leadership, the firm said Pantami won a fresh Peoples Democratic Party primary but was excluded from the final candidate list published on October 10.
Lead counsel Ahmed Raji, SAN, said Pantami was a registered PDP member in Pantami Ward, purchased the required forms and received clearance to contest. The lawyers said he initially won the party’s governorship primary on May 26, after which the PDP submitted his particulars to INEC on August 8.
The firm stated that INEC published Pantami’s name on August 29. However, two suits filed at the Federal High Court in Gombe challenged the primary, with the plaintiffs questioning his membership of the PDP.
According to the lawyers, judgments delivered on September 24 resolved the membership question in Pantami’s favor. They said the court nevertheless nullified the original primary over issues concerning its conduct and ordered the party to hold another exercise within 30 days.
The lawyers said the court directed that all aspirants cleared on May 14 be allowed to participate. They maintained that the PDP complied, notified INEC and held a fresh primary on September 29 under the commission’s monitoring, with Pantami again emerging as the winner.
The firm accused INEC of excluding Pantami from the final list without explaining its decision. It demanded that the commission publish and circulate his name as the PDP governorship candidate by Wednesday, October 14, and provide written confirmation of the steps taken.
The report did not include a response from INEC explaining the omission or addressing the lawyers’ demands.
