2027: Six Political Parties Meet Eligibility for Bauchi People’s Mandate Dialogue

From Paul Orude Bauchi

Six political parties have met the eligibility requirements to participate in the 2026 People’s Mandate Dialogue in Bauchi State after organisers adopted a common rule requiring each party to field candidates for all three senatorial seats and the 12 House of Representatives seats in the state.

The parties are the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), All Progressives Congress (APC), Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), African Democratic Congress (ADC) and Action Democratic Party (ADP).

The Central Organising Committee announced this in a statement issued on Thursday, October 29, and signed by its Chairman, Nicholas Afeso Oshojah.

The committee said the requirement was necessary to allow adequate speaking time for participating parties and ensure fairness, given the time available for the programme, adding that the same condition applied to all parties, regardless of their political strength.

The two-day event, which will hold on December 2 and 3, 2026, in Bauchi metropolis, is being organised by the Young Leaders Network (YLN) in collaboration with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Bauchi State Council, Albarka Radio, BASNEC, Thamani, HnG Media Consultancy, the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and other collaborating organisations.

The dialogue will bring senatorial candidates from Bauchi North, Bauchi Central and Bauchi South before citizens to present their programmes, explain their plans for their constituencies and answer questions.

The committee said details of the engagement with House of Representatives candidates would be announced separately.

Discussions will cover education, healthcare, security, agriculture, employment, infrastructure, poverty reduction, the inclusion of youths and women, and transparency in the use of public resources.

Candidates will also be asked to explain how they intend to use their legislative responsibilities, including lawmaking, budget processes, oversight and constituency representation, to address the needs of the people.

The organisers said questions from citizens and documented community demands, including existing Community Charters of Demand, would guide the discussions. Candidates’ responses and voluntary commitments would also be recorded to provide a basis for holding them accountable after the 2027 elections.

The committee said the dialogue would remain non-partisan and independent, adding that it was not being sponsored or controlled by any political party, candidate or government. It also ruled out accepting financial or material support from participating parties and candidates.

It explained that the National Orientation Agency’s involvement was limited to public enlightenment and did not amount to political sponsorship or control of the programme.

According to the committee, all participating candidates will be given equal opportunities to address citizens’ questions under the same rules and independent moderation. It said the event would not be used to endorse or rank any candidate.

Further details about the venue, session arrangements, public participation and media coverage will be announced later.