From Femi Oyelola, Kaduna
Discontented aspirants from the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kaduna State’s three senatorial zones protested the party’s primary elections on Tuesday.
They called for the cancellation of their membership over alleged irregularities and violations of party rules.
The protest was led by senator Danjuma Laah, along with other affected aspirants, including Michael Ayuba Auta from Kaduna South and Yusuf Bala Ikara from Kaduna North, after holding a press conference at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) secretariat in Kaduna.
The aspirants, accompanied by large crowds of supporters flooding the NUJ premises, urged the APC National Working Committee (NWC) to nullify the primaries held across Kaduna North, Kaduna Central, and Kaduna South districts and to order new direct primary elections supervised by the party’s national leadership.
Addressing reporters, the group accused the election process of failing to adhere to the provisions of the Electoral Act and the APC constitution.
They specifically challenged the results of the Kaduna South senatorial primary, which declared Senator Sunday Marshall Katung the winner, alleging that the process lacked transparency and proper oversight.
“A Senator, Sunday Marshall Katung, was illegally declared a winner with over 7,500 votes purportedly cast by delegates, despite the absence of proper voting procedures and party officials across the district,” the group claimed.
The aspirants also said the primaries strayed from the direct primary mode previously approved by the party’s National Working Committee.
They contended that members were not given the chance to vote at the ward level, as required under the approved rules.
“The National Working Committee officially approved direct primaries for the exercise, but what was conducted was an unauthorized delegate system,” they stated.
They further accused election officials and materials of being inadequately deployed across wards and polling centers during the primaries.
The protesters argued that the conduct of the election violated provisions of Section 84 of the Electoral Act 2022 and Article 20 of the APC constitution concerning nomination procedures and internal democracy.
They appealed to the APC national leadership, the appeal committee, and INEC to step in and ensure a transparent, credible process.
Among those identified as aggrieved aspirants were former Kaduna State House of Assembly Speaker Yusuf Zailani, Mohammed Mu’azu Makkadas, and others from the three districts.
The aspirants warned that ignoring their concerns could threaten party unity ahead of the upcoming elections.
