13 February, 2026
by Mohammed Bello Doka
Muslims across Nigeria must pause — and look carefully.
Not as APC members.
Not as PDP loyalists.
Not as appointees.
Not as beneficiaries of proximity to power.
But as Muslims.
What is happening is no longer subtle. It is no longer technical. It is no longer coincidence. It is a pattern. And patterns demand clarity.
On February 13, 2026, the Independent National Electoral Commission announced the timetable for the 2027 general elections. The Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, stood before Nigerians and emphasized constitutional compliance, Section 28(1) of the Electoral Act 2022, and the inevitability of deadlines ahead of May 29, 2027.
The dates were clear:
February 20, 2027 — Presidential and National Assembly elections.
March 6, 2027 — Governorship and State Houses of Assembly elections.
What was not emphasized in that speech — but was instantly obvious — is that both dates fall squarely within Ramadan 1448 AH.
Ramadan is projected to begin around February 8, 2027 and end around March 8, 2027, subject to moon sighting.
The presidential election will occur in the middle of Ramadan.
The governorship elections will occur in the final ten nights — near Laylat al-Qadr.
This is not theoretical. This is not symbolic. This is physical. Muslims will fast from dawn to sunset. No water. No food. No rest relief. In dry-season heat.
And this is not the first time.
In February 2026, the FCT Area Council elections were fixed during Ramadan. In my earlier article, “Fixing FCT Elections During Ramadan Confirms Fears That Amupitan Is Working Against Islam,” I warned that this decision imposed a disproportionate burden on fasting Muslims in Abuja’s peak dry season, where temperatures routinely exceed 35°C.
I argued then that Ramadan is predictable. It is not a surprise. It is not an emergency. It is calculated years in advance. Previous electoral authorities avoided scheduling major elections during Ramadan. That practice reflected sensitivity in a deeply religious society.
The response to that article was not engagement. It was insult. Mockery. Threats. Calls for arrest. Even veiled wishes of death.
Yet here we are.
Not only was the FCT election fixed during Ramadan — now the entire nation is asked to vote during Ramadan again.
This is no longer oversight.
A mistake made once can be error.
A mistake repeated nationally becomes policy.
And policy demands accountability.
The contradiction deepened on January 9, 2026, when the APC National Chairman publicly explained that the party deliberately avoided hosting ceremonies to receive defecting Muslim governors during Ramadan. He said, in essence, that Ramadan requires respect. That fasting imposes real constraints. That political celebration during the holy month would be insensitive.
That single admission collapsed every technical defense now being offered.
If Ramadan is too sacred for ceremonies, how is it suitable for elections?
If party pageantry must pause out of respect for fasting Muslims, why must Muslim voters endure hours of queuing, trekking, accreditation delays, malfunctioning machines, dehydration, and exposure to Abuja’s brutal heat to exercise their civic rights?
Which Islam is respected — and which Islam is inconvenienced?
You cannot argue that Ramadan matters when it affects party optics, and then argue that Ramadan is irrelevant when it affects Muslim voters.
Either fasting is burdensome — or it is not.
Either Ramadan demands accommodation — or it does not.
APC’s own statement established the principle. INEC’s timetable violates it.
Some defenders now retreat into legality. They argue that nothing in the Constitution prohibits elections during Ramadan. That timelines are fixed. That compliance is paramount.
Legality is not the only standard of democracy. Legitimacy is.
Democracy is not merely about obeying technical clauses. It is about ensuring equal access to participation. When one faith community must fast under punishing conditions while standing in line for hours, while others can eat, drink, and recover, the burden is not equal.
Equality on paper does not guarantee equality in practice.
And this controversy does not exist in isolation.
In December 2025, I wrote “Is Tinubu Waging a Quiet War on the Muslim North – or Is It All Coincidence?” That article did not allege motives. It laid out patterns.
Visible shifts in political leadership.
Exits of key Muslim Northern figures.
Reshuffles in defence and security oversight.
Consolidation of strategic institutions elsewhere.
Insecurity in the North escalating while urgency appears inconsistent.
Each event individually defensible. Together, suggestive.
In January 2026, in “Tinubu’s Silent War on the Muslim North, Revisited,” I expanded the question. Why do power, protection, and proximity keep moving in one direction? Why do accusations and exposure repeatedly feature Northern Muslim powerbrokers, while closure remains elusive? Why do institutional headquarters and economic levers drift away from the same region that is simultaneously battling displacement and insecurity?
Again, insults followed.
But now, the 2027 Ramadan election timetable enters that broader context.
When you place the FCT Ramadan decision beside the 2027 Ramadan decision, beside the public APC acknowledgment that Ramadan requires accommodation, beside the reshuffling of key positions, beside insecurity patterns, beside silence from the highest office — the question is no longer whether Muslims are “paranoid.”
The question is whether coincidence can stretch this far without snapping.
INEC’s Chairman cannot claim ignorance. The FCT backlash was loud. It was national. It was debated. It was written about. It was defended. It was condemned.
If the FCT decision was controversial, why repeat the same scheduling on a national scale?
Why was Ramadan not publicly addressed in the February 13 speech? Why were no mitigation measures announced? No reduced-hour strategy? No staggered logistics? No engagement with major Islamic bodies?
Silence amplifies perception.
Leadership history also matters. Public controversies surrounding the Chairman’s earlier legal arguments, which inflamed Muslim sentiment years ago, did not evaporate upon appointment. Trust once shaken does not reset automatically.
When actions intersect with prior perception, interpretation becomes inevitable.
Some pro-government Muslim voices have attempted to dismiss the controversy as exaggerated or politically motivated. But even their engagement signals discomfort. If the issue were trivial, it would not require rebuttal.
This is not about demonizing government. It is about confronting a structural reality.
Muslim governors, senators, members of the House of Representatives — where are you?
Have you demanded clarification?
Have you requested engagement?
Have you publicly insisted on accommodation?
Silence in moments like this is not neutrality. It is alignment with the status quo.
This is not a partisan issue. It is a participation issue.
And the presidency cannot be insulated from the question. The INEC Chairman did not appoint himself. Institutional independence does not erase appointment responsibility. When controversy surfaces and no corrective signal emerges, observers interpret silence as endorsement.
That perception may be uncomfortable. But it exists.
This debate is not about hostility as a slogan. It is about impact.
Fasting voters will likely delay voting until late afternoon. Polling units will experience congestion. Turnout patterns may shift. Electoral outcomes may be influenced indirectly by physical endurance rather than political persuasion.
An election may satisfy procedural checklists and still suffer a legitimacy deficit.
Nigeria is a multi-faith republic. Neutrality requires more than equal calendar treatment. It requires sensitivity to lived realities.
Ramadan is not a metaphor. It is a lived obligation.
This is why this moment demands clarity from the Muslim Ummah — beyond party lines.
The Muslim–Muslim ticket of 2023 was defended as a strategic necessity. Many absorbed criticism to secure victory. If respect for Muslim participation erodes now, what exactly was secured?
This is not a call for unrest. It is a call for accountability.
Demand explanation.
Demand engagement.
Demand mitigation.
Demand acknowledgment.
If Ramadan is sacred enough to pause ceremonies, it is sacred enough to reconsider election scheduling.
And if the dates remain unchanged, then transparency must follow. Explain the constraint. Show the calculations. Reveal the consultations. Demonstrate that inclusion was considered and not dismissed.
Democracy thrives on trust. Trust collapses under repetition without reflection.
The FCT was the warning.
The APC statement was the contradiction.
The 2027 timetable is the escalation.
This is no longer a clerical oversight.
It is a decision that carries weight, symbolism, and consequence.
Muslims across Nigeria must decide whether to interpret it as routine administration — or as part of a broader pattern that demands response.
History rarely announces turning points loudly. It reveals them through accumulation.
One decision may be dismissed.
Two may be debated.
Three form a pattern.
And patterns shape political destiny.
The time for whispers has passed.
The time for clarity has arrived.
Mohammed Bello Doka can be reached via [email protected]
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Opinion