By Sabiu Abdullahi
A Nigerian university lecturer, Mubarak Ibrahim Lawan, has raised concerns over the scheduling of the 2027 general elections in Nigeria, describing the dates as anti-Islamic and warning that they could spark religious conflict in the country.
In a Facebook post, Lawan criticized the decision to hold the gubernatorial election in the middle of Ramadan and the presidential election on the eve of Eid. He wrote:
“Let Mr. President know that the anti-Islamic election dates set by the Islamophobe, Amupitan, would surely ignite a religious war in the country. To every responsible Muslim, the sacrosanctity of Ramadan is inviolable and, inserting gubernatorial election in the middle of it and the presidential one on the eve of Eid is no different from desecrating the holiness of the month.”
Lawan argued that the timing of the elections could disenfranchise Muslim voters, who may prioritize religious observance over participating in the polls. He added:
“Similarly, this is a criminally insidious way of disenfranchising the Muslim Community as they would surely choose to stay on the holy course and neglect the worldly one, especially on the presidential election day, the eve of Eid. Therefore, we unequivocally disagree and uniformly ask for review of the undue dates.”
The lecturer also expressed concern over the apparent lack of response from northern political representatives, suggesting that the proposed schedule could advantage southern candidates. He stated:
“In the same vein, this dating is anti-northern blog. I wonder why no northern governor, senator or member of the house of representative is yet to attack the proposal. If they think that this dating has only an anti-Islamic agenda they are wrong. I believe, should the elections hold on the dates so far given, voter apathy would be remarkably seen everywhere in the North and that would be an advantage to the South. So, we do not agree!”
Lawan’s post reflects growing debate among civil society groups and political commentators about the potential impact of the election timetable on voter participation and national cohesion.
At the time of filing this report, neither the presidency nor the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had responded to the concerns raised by Lawan.
