By Leonard Ufondu
ASABA—A Federal High Court sitting in Asaba, Delta State, has been asked to nullify the All Progressives Congress, APC, primary election for the Ndokwa/Ukwuani Federal Constituency held on May 16, 2026. The suit was filed by an aspirant, Mr. Chukwuemeke Victor, through his counsel, Mr. Evans Ufeli, challenging the primary that produced Mr. Nnamdi Ezechi as the party’s candidate.
Victor is asking the court to declare the exercise invalid, alleging non-compliance with the Electoral Act, the 1999 Constitution and the APC Constitution. According to the court processes, the applicant contended that the party failed to adequately communicate its guidelines, the venue and the mode of the primary election to aspirants and party members before the exercise.
He further alleged that the decision to adopt the direct primary mode “was communicated only a few hours before the election,” making it difficult for aspirants to prepare adequately. The applicant also claimed that eligible aspirants were not publicly listed before the exercise, membership accreditation was not properly conducted and some Ward Returning Officers were not issued official result sheets. Victor equally alleged that ward results were neither properly recorded nor publicly announced, adding that the final collation at Utagba-Uno was conducted without adequate notice. According to the suit, “the declaration of the first respondent as winner was made without a transparent presentation of the aggregated results from the various wards.”
Maintaining that the alleged irregularities substantially affected his participation in the primary, Victor urged the court to order the APC to conduct a fresh primary election in accordance with the Electoral Act and the party’s constitution and guidelines.
He also asked the court to restrain the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from recognising any candidate emerging from the disputed primary pending the determination of the suit. The applicant is equally seeking ₦500 million as costs against the second respondent, Mr. Ossai Ossai.
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However, the respondents urged the court to dismiss the suit, insisting that the primary election was conducted in substantial compliance with the Electoral Act and APC guidelines. In his counter-affidavit, Ezechi stated that he polled 20,097 votes to emerge winner, while Ossai secured 923 votes and Victor scored 121 votes. The respondents also relied on an INEC monitoring report, which they said confirmed that “the collation of results at Utagba-Uno Community Town Hall was peaceful, orderly and hitch-free.”
They further argued that Victor failed to exhaust the APC’s internal dispute-resolution mechanism before instituting the action and had not produced sufficient evidence to support his claims. The respondents therefore urged the court to dismiss the suit, contending that “the action is incompetent and lacks merit.”
