22nd October, 2010
The Mega Progressive People’s Party, MPPP, has called on the Independent National  Electoral Commission, INEC, to cancel the registration of Social Democratic Mega Party, SDMP, on the ground that its name clearly resembles the description and acronym of its party otherwise known as Mega Party, else it will seek redress in the court of law.
Alhaji Rasheed Adewale Shita-Bey, the MPPP boss is of the belief that the registration of two political parties with identical acronyms (Mega Party) is wrong while the SDMP boss Professor Pat Utomi said nothing was wrong with such development.
Against this background, Alhaji Shitta-Bey, a former Alliance for Democracy, AD, chieftain petitioned the INEC, asking it to cancel SDMP registration.
In the petition dated 13 September, 2010, he alleged that the registration of SDMP contravened INEC’s regulation that the name or acronym of the association seeking registration must not be the same as the name or acronym of an existing party or association.
He pointed out that in all their meetings, their slogan has always been “mega partyâ€, complaining that the party, SDMP, copiously used his party’s acronym “Megaâ€Â with the aim to deceiving or confusing members of the public over the identity of  MPPP.
Shitta-Bey reasoned that the INEC should have refused to register the SDMP based on this reason, asking it to de-register the party if truly the commission was committed to conducting free, fair and credible election in 2011.
The MPPP boss further stated that one other reason why INEC should not have registered the SDMP is that, “the name is the same as the registered description of Mega Progressive Peoples Party otherwise known as “Mega partyâ€.
He added that the name could mislead the voters about the effect of their votes and that the name could contradict or hinder a voter’s understanding of any instructions about the voting process.
While submitting that registration of the SDMP was in clear breach of section 78 of the Electoral Act, 2010, Shitta-Bey urged INEC to clear the mess caused by the ill-advised registration of the SDMP by ensuring that nomination forms are not given to the party so as to prevent it from participating in the forthcoming 2011 general elections.
INEC in a letter signed by its secretary to the SDMP entitled: “reply to 2nd verification visit 10/06/2010 and dated 5 August, 2010, read “the Commission at its meeting on Tuesday 3 August, 2010 observed the similarity in the name of your political association with one of the registered political parties.
“Accordingly, the commission advises you change the name of your political association for further consideration.â€
The SDMP boss, Professor Pat Utomi in his reply rejected INEC’s observation, explaining that there was precedence in registering parties with identical nomenclature in the past.
He described its rejection by INEC because of the word “Mega†as untenable, explaining that words such as “Peoples, Democratic†and “Nigeria†are just three of the words that recur continually in the names of political parties registered by the commission.
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