By Joy Yesufu
The name of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, is missing from the final list of candidates cleared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the February 6, 2027 governorship election in Gombe State.
The omission comes amid legal and electoral questions surrounding Pantami’s nomination as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
INEC’s final list contains 16 candidates, including Bala Bello Tinka of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Babayo Ardo Kumo of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC)..
Other candidates listed are Zubairu Mu’azu Halilu of the Labour Party, Lamela L. Silas of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Ibrahim Jalo Abubakar of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) and Adamu Mohammed Ma’aji of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), among others.
Pantami’s name had appeared on the provisional list published on August 29, but was absent from the final list.
The former minister initially sought the APC governorship ticket before defecting to the PDP in May 2026, where he emerged as the party’s candidate.
His nomination was subsequently challenged in court by aggrieved PDP aspirants. On September 24, a Federal High Court in Gombe nullified the process that produced him and ordered the party to conduct a fresh primary.
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Pantami won the rerun primary held on September 29, defeating Khamisu Mailantarki and Usman Aliyu Garry.
However, a separate Supreme Court judgment delivered on September 24 restored key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 governing political party membership registers and candidate nominations.
The provisions require political parties to submit their membership registers to INEC within the stipulated period and restrict participation in party primaries to eligible members listed in the relevant register.
INEC has been reviewing the implications of the Supreme Court judgment following complaints from political parties and aspirants over its application to nominations for the 2027 elections.
The reason for Pantami’s omission from the final Gombe list was not stated in the information provided for this report. INEC’s clarification would be necessary to establish whether the omission is directly linked to the membership-register provisions, the litigation surrounding his nomination or another issue.
