Mr. Anaba
The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Lagos State Council election scheduled for Monday, November 9, has been thrown into controversy following allegations of bias and irregularities by one of the chairmanship candidates, Mr Innocent Anaba, who has formally withdrawn from the race and called for the suspension of the exercise.
Anaba, through his campaign council, petitioned the electoral committee, accusing it of allegedly manipulating electoral rules to favour his opponent and undermining the credibility of the process.
The petition which was jointly signed by Anaba and his Campaign Council Director-General, Jimoh Babatunde, which was copied to the leadership of the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria (NPAN), Nigerian Press Council (NPC), Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), NUJ national leadership and Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), raised concerns over the committee’s handling of the campaign timetable and delegate lists.
According to the campaign council, the published electoral guidelines stipulated that campaigns would end at midnight on Friday, November 6, 2026, without any extension.
However, it alleged that campaign messages associated with one of the contestants continued circulating after 8a.m on November 7, before the committee issued a notice extending the campaign period at about 9:07am that day.
The council questioned the authority of the committee to alter the timetable after the stipulated deadline, particularly when, according to it, no request for an extension had been made by Anaba’s campaign team.
It also demanded explanations on who requested the extension, when the decision was taken and whether all contestants were consulted and informed equally.
The campaign council further challenged changes to the financial membership records and delegate lists, alleging that the Lagos Information Chapel’s membership increased from about 231 to 309 delegates.
It said it had written to the electoral committee and NUJ National Secretariat seeking documentary evidence of payments, including dates, amounts, applicable fees and the constitutional basis for admitting the additional members.
Citing Articles 4(1)(a) and 4(2)(a) of the NUJ Constitution, the council insisted that the records were necessary to establish whether the additional names satisfied the union’s constitutional requirements and financial membership deadline.
Expressing dissatisfaction with the committee’s response, the campaign council said the alleged inconsistencies had eroded its confidence in the fairness and impartiality of the election.
Consequently, it called for the immediate suspension of the election pending an independent investigation into the complaints.
It proposed the constitution of an independent panel comprising representatives of the NUJ national leadership, Nigerian Press Council, NPAN, NGE and other relevant media stakeholders to examine the allegations and electoral records.
The proposed panel is also expected to determine whether the electoral guidelines were properly followed and recommend appropriate measures, including the constitution of a fresh electoral committee and conduct of a new election, if necessary.
Meanwhile, Anaba’s campaign council formally announced his withdrawal from the chairmanship contest, describing the decision as a principled response to the circumstances surrounding the election.
It, however, stressed that the withdrawal should not be interpreted as an endorsement of the electoral committee’s actions or a waiver of its right to pursue the complaints through the union or legal channels.
The council also declared that it would not endorse the conduct or outcome of the election under the prevailing circumstances.
“Democracy is not sustained merely by conducting elections. It is sustained by the confidence of participants that the rules are known, respected and applied equally to all contestants,” the petition stated.