2027: APC Holds Firm on Primaries, Says Less Than 2% Appeals Succeeded
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has finalised its list of candidates for the 2027 general elections and ruled out any review of the recently concluded primaries, despite mounting petitions and protests by aggrieved aspirants across the country.
Findings revealed that the ruling party has concluded work on the results submitted to its national secretariat and is preparing to upload the names of successful candidates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal.
The development effectively closes the door on fresh appeals and demands for rerun primaries by disgruntled party members, many of whom have accused party officials of manipulation and candidate imposition during the exercise.
According to a senior party official and a member of the National Working Committee (NWC), the APC has neither altered nor is considering any review of the results from the recently concluded primaries.
“We are not reviewing the results of the primaries. The timeline for primaries and appeals has already elapsed. We are simply waiting for the code to upload the names of winners of the primaries.
“Everything has been concluded. We are not aware of any review being discussed,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said on Friday.
INEC has fixed June 26 for the release of access codes to its nomination portal, while July 11 remains the deadline for submission of candidates’ particulars for the 2027 general elections.
Appeals Made No Significant Difference
No fewer than 54 serving federal lawmakers, including ranking senators and members of the House of Representatives, reportedly failed to secure re-election tickets during the APC primaries held between May 16 and 18.
Many aggrieved aspirants, particularly from Lagos, Delta, Zamfara, Kogi, Rivers, Plateau and Osun states, have since lodged petitions, threatened legal action and demanded fresh primaries.
Reacting to reports on the activities of the appeal panels set up by the party, the APC chieftain dismissed suggestions that the panels significantly altered the outcomes.
“From what I have seen, the appeal reports did not make any significant changes to the primary results because many of the petitions were found to be frivolous.
“Any appeal that was properly presented would have been considered. However, some petitions raised issues of zoning, which are pre-primary matters.
“Others complained about clearance issues, such as whether a candidate properly resigned from the PDP before joining the APC. Such issues do not constitute grounds to challenge our primaries,” he said.
He further noted that with 109 senatorial districts, 360 House of Representatives constituencies and thousands of House of Assembly seats nationwide, only a small fraction recorded disputes.
“I can tell you there were no appeals in the majority of constituencies. So where is this talk about a major review coming from? The results to be announced may not be different from what is already known,” he added.
Petitions Against Okowa, Chinda
Investigations revealed that the senator representing Delta North Senatorial District, Ned Nwoko, is challenging the outcome of the APC primary in which he lost to former Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa.
According to party sources, Nwoko’s petition is based on allegations that Okowa did not formally resign from the Peoples Democratic Party before joining the APC.
Okowa joined the APC on April 23 alongside Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori.
Similarly, aggrieved APC aspirants in Rivers State have reportedly challenged the emergence of Kingsley Chinda as the party’s governorship candidate.
Chinda, who participated in the primaries while serving as Minority Leader of the House of Representatives representing Obio/Akpor Federal Constituency, has also come under scrutiny.
Addressing the Rivers controversy, the APC official maintained that party membership is determined internally.
“As far as the APC register is concerned, he is a registered member of our party. He does not need to publicly announce the date he joined after leaving the PDP.
“When Bukola Saraki left the APC to rejoin the PDP, did he resign as Senate President? Membership is an internal party matter, and only the party can determine who its members are,” he stated.
Tinubu Yet to Intervene
The NWC member also dismissed reports that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had intervened in the crisis rocking the party after the primaries.
According to him, if the President intended to intervene, such action would have happened before the primaries to safeguard his political interests.
He insisted that neither Tinubu nor any official from the Presidency had contacted party leaders over calls to review the results.
Speaking on the controversies surrounding the Lagos primaries, the APC official said all winners had been confirmed and were set for upload to the INEC portal.
“Anybody who emerged in the Lagos primaries has emerged. Was the President unaware before their emergence? Lagos results remain intact. Nothing has changed, and nothing will change.
“Generally, we are not considering any review. Perhaps less than two per cent of petitions filed by aggrieved aspirants succeeded. So, there is no significant change to the results,” he said.
When contacted, APC National Secretary, Ajibola Basiru, declined to comment.
“This is an internal affair of our party; I cannot discuss that on the pages of a newspaper,” he said.
Similarly, APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, neither answered calls nor responded to messages.
Aggrieved Aspirants Hope for Presidential Intervention
Despite the party’s position, some aggrieved aspirants remain hopeful that President Tinubu will intervene before the final submission to INEC.
One aspirant in Lagos, who spoke anonymously, alleged that certain influential figures were shielding the President from the true situation within the party.
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“These issues did not start today, but because this is Lagos, naturally Mr President will be interested. Some powers that be are trying to ambush the President and prevent him from seeing the real picture.
“The Tinubu I know has always listened to all sides and conducted independent findings to know the most popular aspirant in any constituency. I believe he will do the right thing,” the source said.
Another aspirant warned that proceeding with disputed primary results could negatively affect the APC’s chances in the 2027 elections.
“There were massive protests during the week at the party secretariat over the outcome of the primaries. These are serious issues for Mr President.
“With the economic and security challenges facing the country, the APC should resolve this crisis and allow the President to focus on governance.
“Some members may defect before the election, but the greater danger lies with those who remain in the party but secretly work for the opposition. Even indifference from a single party member on election day can create serious setbacks,” the aspirant warned.
