The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has said that it has so far recorded about 86 new political parties seeking for registration ahead of the 2019 general election.

Chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, said this during a meeting with leaders of political parties at INEC headquarters, Abuja, on Tuesday.

“The number of applications for registration of new associations as political parties now stands at 86,” he said, while congratulating the 10 political parties that were recently re-registered after they were initially deregistered having not won any seat during the 2015 general election.

Yakubu gave some of the names of the intending political parties as: Better Nigeria Peoples Parties, BNPP, Peoples Redemption Party, PRP, Peoples Progressives Party, PPP, Democratic Alternative, DA, National Action Council, NAC, and National Democratic Liberty Party, NDLP.

Others include: Masses Movement of Nigeria, MMN, National Conscience Party, NCP, Nigeria Element Progressives Party, NEPP, National Unity Party, NUP, among others.

The INEC boss said that the names of the political parties have already been uploaded on the commission’s website.

“But, I will like to appeal to those of them, out of the ten that are yet to open their offices, to do so and immediately notify the commission,” he said.

Yakubu also commended the Inter Party Advisory Council, IPAC, on the peaceful and successful conduct of its election, which he described as important for the development of the country’s electoral system.

He gave assurances that “INEC will continue to partner IPAC.”

Also speaking at the meeting, chairman of IPAC, Mohammed Nalado, urged INEC to look for other alternatives to deregistration of political parties.

He also expressed displeasure with INEC for not properly consulting with political parties before fixing the dates for the 2019 general election.

The IPAC chair admitted that the INEC boss notified the association of the decision, but said that it did not know whether the information was official or not until it was in the newspapers.

“We had a meeting with the INEC chairman, unfortunately we did not understand him whether he was telling us officially or he was just giving us information on how our elections should be done,” Nalado said.

He reiterated IPAC’s commitment to working with INEC in deepening the country’s democracy.

Nalado also urged the commission’s new National Commissioners to make their inputs to the development of the electoral system.