*PUBLIC NOTICE*

*HallowMace Africa Opens Voting Portal For The National Legislative Awards 2026: Call For Public Participation*

Following the successful unveiling of the maiden edition of The National Legislative Awards 2026, HallowMace Foundation Africa, in collaboration with its partners, the International Goodwill Ambassador Club, ERGAF Africa, and the Isabella Ayuk Foundation, is pleased to announce the official opening of the voting portal for the general public.

In line with our commitment to credibility, transparency, and citizen participation, the voting process has been designed to empower Nigerians to actively scorecard their representatives. This exercise is critical to identifying the Three Most Outstanding Legislators per Geo-Political Zone across both chambers of the National Assembly.

*Voting Guidelines:*

*Scope:* Citizens are invited to nominate and vote for legislators based on impact, visibility, and constituency representation.

*Categories:*

*Senate:* 3 Senators per Geo-Political Zone.

*House of Representatives:* 3 Members per Geo-Political Zone.

*Method of Submission:* All votes and nominations must be submitted electronically via email.

*Submission Email:*
thenationallegislativeawards@gmail.com

*Voting Period:*
Voting for this stage is open from March 17th, 2026 to March 31st, 2026.

We urge the general public, civil society organizations, and constituents across the six geo-political zones to participate in this historic process. Your vote will serve as a verifiable tool to shape the narrative of legislative excellence in Nigeria.

*For further inquiries or partnership details, please contact the Public Communications Desk.*

E-Signed

*Amb. Oguh Hyginus John*
FIMC, CMC, CMS
*Head, Public Communications Desk*
HallowMace Foundation Africa

*Hashtags For Social Media Distribution:*

#NationalLegislativeAwards2026

#HallowMaceAt10

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#LegislativeVote

By Our Correspondent

As 2027 election draws close, a coalition of South-East advocacy organisations has called on political parties in Nigeria to zone their presidential tickets to the South-East ahead of the 2027 Nigerian General Elections, insisting that justice, fairness and national balance demand that the region produce the next President of the country.

The groups made the declaration on Monday during a special joint press conference held in Enugu by the South East Enlightenment Group, the Igbo Leadership Development Foundation, and other stakeholders within the African Democratic Congress.

Speaking to journalists, the National President of the South East Enlightenment Group, Dr Godwin Udibe, said the coalition convened the briefing following the recent release of the election timetable by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

According to him, the timetable signals the beginning of political activities ahead of the 2027 elections, making it necessary for the region to restate its long-standing demand for equity and rotation of presidential power.

Udibe argued that the South-East has remained the only geopolitical zone in southern Nigeria yet to produce a President in the current democratic dispensation.

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He noted that under the Fourth Nigerian Republic, the South-West has produced the President three times, the South-South once, while the South-East has not had the opportunity.

“This reveals a frightening prospect for the South-East. The region appears to be steadily sidelined in the scheme of power play in Nigeria, with many of our people feeling alienated,” he said.

The coalition therefore urged all political parties to zone their presidential tickets to the South-East in the interest of national unity and fairness.

The groups recalled the political arrangement in 1998 when major political parties zoned their presidential tickets to the South-West following the annulment of the 1993 Nigerian presidential election.

They argued that a similar consensus would promote justice and strengthen the country’s democratic stability.

Udibe also expressed concern that the leading political platforms may not offer viable pathways for South-East aspirants.

He noted that within the All Progressives Congress, the presidential ticket appears secured for the incumbent President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, while the African Democratic Congress has reportedly opened its race to contenders such as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Rivers State Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.

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He further stated that both the People’s Democratic Party and the Labour Party are currently grappling with internal crises, which he described as making them “undesirable platforms for serious contenders.”

The groups also criticised what they described as a “poaching game” by the ruling APC, noting that the party currently has about 31 governors ruling on its platform across the federation.

However, Udibe argued that political defections do not necessarily translate into improved welfare for citizens in the South-East.

According to him, the development has further strengthened the resolve of regional stakeholders to pursue collective interests.

In a direct appeal, the coalition called on President Tinubu not to seek a second term in office in 2027 but instead support a South-East candidate to complete the remaining years of the South’s turn in the presidency.

“For equity’s sake, we call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu not to run for a second term in 2027 but to support a South-Easterner to clinch the presidency for a single term to complete eight years of southern presidency,” Udibe said.

He added that after such an arrangement, the presidency should return to the North in keeping with Nigeria’s informal power-rotation principle.

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The coalition also warned that South-East governors who oppose the region’s presidency project could face electoral backlash.

Udibe said the groups would mobilise voters across the South-East to reject any political leader perceived to be working against the region’s collective ambition.

“We will mobilise the South-East to vote out any governor working against the South-East presidency project,” he stated.

The groups concluded by reaffirming their commitment to rallying support across Nigeria for a South-East presidential candidate in 2027, insisting that the demand is rooted in fairness, national inclusion, and democratic balance

By George Mgbeleke

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has accused powerful figures within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of plotting to pressure the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise Mr. Nafiu Bala Gombe, an expelled member of the party, as ADC National Chairman. The party described the move as part of the elaborate plot by the ruling party to ensure that President Tinubu emerges unopposed as the only serious contender on the ballot in 2027.

In a statement issued in Abuja and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party described the move as a calculated attempt by elements within the ruling establishment to manufacture confusion within the ADC and weaken the only viable opposition platform left in the country.

The party maintained that there is no legal basis for any confusion as its leadership remains firmly under Senator David Mark following a combined meeting of the National Working Committee and National Executive Committee witnessed by INEC officials in July 2025.

The party vows to employ every legitimate means to resist plots by anti-democratic forces within the ruling party to end competitive democracy in Nigeria.

The full statement read:

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has uncovered a desperate and sinister plot is allegedly being orchestrated by powerful figures within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to pressure the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) into recognising a certain Nafiu Bala as the National Chairman of the ADC.
This brazen attempt to undermine and destabilise the opposition ahead of the 2027 general elections is reportedly being driven by an APC governor in collaboration with a senior security official based in Abuja as part of the plot to impose President Tinubu on Nigerians as the sole presidential contender in 2027.

At the centre of this scheme is Mr. Nafiu Bala Gombe, an expelled member of the ADC who has recently been parading himself as a leader of the party while collaborating with external political interests. Mr. Gombe, who once claimed to be Deputy National Chairman under the former National Chairman, Ralph Nwosu, was duly expelled from the ADC after engaging in actions that were inconsistent with the party’s constitution, its principles, and the collective decisions of its leadership.

It is therefore shocking, though not surprising, that elements within the ruling establishment are now attempting to use him as a willing instrument of destabilisation and plot to forcefully take over the leadership of the ADC.

The objective is clear: to manufacture confusion within the ADC, sponsor illegitimate leadership claims, and ultimately cripple the only credible opposition platform that Nigerians are increasingly looking to as a genuine alternative, thereby leaving Nigerians no choice in the next general election, despite widespread suffering that the ruling party has brought on the people.

It may be worth reiterating that a properly constituted combined meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC) and National Executive Committee (NEC), witnessed by officials of INEC, transferred leadership to the coalition led by Senator David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola in July 2025.

This exercise was duly acknowledged by INEC with a formal recognition of the David Mark leadership in September 2025. And most recently, on March 6, a Federal High Court had dismissed a case challenging Mark’s leadership of the party, affirming a well- grounded Supreme Court judgement that matters of leadership is wholly an internal affair of political parties.

We therefore wonder at the level of desperation that is driving these anti-democratic forces to continue in their sinister efforts to impose expelled individuals on the party or manipulate its internal structures through external political pressure on judges and electoral officials.
Nigeria’s democracy cannot thrive where the ruling party seeks to capture, infiltrate, or manufacture opposition parties for its own political convenience and survival. Such actions represent a dangerous assault on democratic pluralism and the constitutional right of Nigerians to freely organise and support credible political alternatives.

We therefore call on the general public, party members, and democratic institutions to disregard the activities and claims of Mr. Nafiu Bala Gombe and those backing his illegitimate adventure. We know them and their game plans and we will resist them by all means necessary. We will defend our democracy.

The ADC remains united, focused, and committed to building a strong democratic alternative for Nigerians. No amount of intimidation, infiltration, or political engineering will derail this mission.