The Federal High Court in Abuja nullified the ward and local government congresses that the All Progressives Congress (APC) claimed to have conducted on 7 February in Kogi State for the nomination of a governorship candidate for the November election. The court set aside the congresses because they were not conducted in compliance with the 2022 Electoral Act and the APC Constitution. The suit was filed by a group of aggrieved APC members led by Realwan Okpanachi. The plaintiffs in case FHC/ABJ/CS/329/2023 are Rilwan Okpanachi, Yahaya Saidu Nuhu, Omaonu Clement Arome, Mustapha Ibrahim Idoko, Aku Umar Goodman and Abu Steven Okpanachi Onechiojo, with the APC and INEC named as first and second defendants respectively.
Counsel for the plaintiffs, Ogwu Onoja, SAN, argued that the APC breached Section 84 of the Electoral Act and Section 13 of its constitution by fabricating a list of delegates and submitting it to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) without the knowledge of the party’s registered members in the state. Delivering judgment, Justice James Omotosho barred INEC from recognizing or using the delegates list that emerged from the congresses to select the party’s governorship standard‑bearer. He agreed with the plaintiffs that the APC in Kogi State failed to conduct ward and local government congresses as required by law and dismissed the APC’s preliminary objections that the court lacked jurisdiction. The judge warned that ignoring legal requirements would lead to anarchy.
Justice Omotosho ordered the APC leadership to conduct fresh nominations that comply with Section 84 of the Electoral Act 2022 and Section 13 of the party’s constitution. During the trial, the APC failed to disclose the venues and times of the alleged congresses, did not report to INEC officials who supposedly monitored the elections, and could not produce result sheets showing participants’ scores. Moreover, the principal document submitted to justify the February 7 congresses contained only signatures of fictitious participants and no actual names, rendering it worthless under Section 133 of the Evidence Act. Consequently, the court directed the APC to hold special ward and local government congresses in accordance with the relevant legal provisions.
The judge also rejected the APC’s claim that the plaintiffs were not members, noting that the party had presented outdated membership cards and should have produced its membership register to contest the plaintiffs’ status.
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