Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Socialist Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for his reply. In and of themselves the high requirements of the INEC for registration of a political party represent a barrier to freedom of political association. Among these requirements is payment of a so-called administrative fee of 1 million naira, which is non-refundable, and that the party have members in at least 24 states in addition to Abuja. These requirements have been met by the Socialist Party of Nigeria but none the less the registration has not been allowed. It is illustrative that the registration was not, formally speaking, rejected because the deadline for rejection of the initial application had passed. The reply simply stated that the registration is terminated. This would appear to be a politically motivated decision designed to prevent the Socialist Party of Nigeria participating in the elections and, therefore, is contrary to the statements of the President and others about democratic freedoms and rights within Nigeria.

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