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By Faheem Lawal
Hundreds of members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State yesterday stormed the party’s secretariat in Ogba, protesting alleged irregularities that characterised the recently concluded House of Representatives and Lagos State House of Assembly primary elections in several constituencies.
The protesters, comprising party members, supporters and loyalists of the aggrieved aspirants, called on the APC leadership and the party’s various appeal committees to investigate the conduct of the primaries and reverse what they described as widespread violations of the party’s constitution and electoral guidelines.
Among the constituencies at the centre of the controversy are Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency, Amuwo Odofin Constituency II, Ajeromi-Ifelodun Federal Constituency, Oshodi-Isolo Constituency I and Somolu Constituency II.
One of the petitions was filed by a House of Representatives aspirant, Ayodele Adebowale Adewale, who challenged the outcome of the primary election in Amuwo Odofin Federal Constituency.
In a petition addressed to the APC House of Representatives Primary Appeal Committee, Adewale alleged that the exercise conducted across the constituency’s 11 wards was marred by serious procedural irregularities.
He claimed that no official APC membership register was presented during accreditation, whilst party members were allegedly accredited merely through the presentation of APC slips without proper verification of identity or membership status.
The aspirant further alleged that many of the slips used during the exercise were unofficial and might have been mass-produced outside approved party structures.
He consequently urged the committee to conduct a full and independent investigation into the accreditation and voting processes across the 11 wards, review all materials and procedures used during the exercise, nullify the results of the House of Representatives primary election in the constituency and ensure strict compliance with the APC’s constitutional provisions and electoral guidelines in future exercises.
He also submitted video evidence, which he said captured his interaction with officials during accreditation in Festac 1 Ward and documented concerns over the conduct of the exercise.
Similarly, a House of Assembly aspirant for Amuwo Odofin Constituency II, David Olukoya Doherty, petitioned the APC Primary Appeal Committee over alleged irregularities in the primary election conducted across the constituency’s seven wards.
Doherty alleged that the process lacked transparency from the outset, claiming that the selection of the returning officers was influenced in favour of the incumbent lawmaker and that aspirants were excluded from key decisions, including the choice of voting venues.
He also raised concerns over the absence of a verified membership register and alleged that accreditation was conducted using APC slips without proper identity checks.
He further alleged that armed individuals disrupted the exercise in the riverine Wards H, I and J through intimidation and gunfire, forcing party members to flee and rendering the process inconclusive in those areas.
Consequently, he asked the committee to conduct a full, independent and transparent investigation into the election across the seven wards, review all accreditation materials and procedures, nullify the primary election results, discipline individuals found culpable of any wrongdoing and guarantee strict adherence to the party’s rules and guidelines in future primaries.
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In Ajeromi-Ifelodun Federal Constituency, another petition alleged widespread procedural violations, result manipulation and irregular collation of results during the House of Representatives primary election.
The petitioners claimed that electoral officers failed to report to the designated collation centre and that results were allegedly collated and altered elsewhere before being submitted to party officials.
They further alleged that votes were recorded in some wards where elections either were not held or were disrupted by violence.
Specific allegations included the inflation of vote figures in Ago-Hausa, Temidire I and Olodi wards, the absence of membership registers in several wards, failure to conduct proper accreditation and incidents of voter intimidation and exclusion.
The petitioners, therefore, requested a thorough investigation into the conduct of the election, verification of original ward-level results, forensic examination of disputed result sheets and signatures, and a review to ensure that the final outcome reflects the genuine votes cast by party members.
Also under scrutiny is the party’s House of Representatives primary election in Oshodi-Isolo Constituency I.
According to the report submitted to party leaders, the primary election was successfully conducted across the constituency’s five wards, with the aspirant, Stephen Olukayode Ogundipe, reportedly polling 11,939 votes against Alakija’s 3,086 votes.
However, the report alleged that after the election, the returning officer, Prince AbdulRasaq Omoloja, was lured to the Local Government Secretariat by party officials and subsequently detained against his will.
The report further claimed that despite the alleged intimidation, the returning officer succeeded in transmitting the authentic results to the party’s National Secretariat.
Supporters of the reported winner urged the party leadership to uphold the results already transmitted by the electoral committee and reject any attempt to alter the outcome.
Meanwhile, the controversy has also spread to Somolu Constituency II, where the incumbent lawmaker, Samuel Olu Apata, petitioned the party over what he described as attempts to overturn the outcome of the House of Assembly primary election.
Apata maintained that the primary election was conducted peacefully and transparently and that he emerged victorious with 9,081 votes, defeating Aturase, who polled 814 votes, and Mr Alli Balogun, who secured 677 votes.
The lawmaker alleged that some individuals within the party were plotting to substitute him with another aspirant who did not win the primary election.
He, therefore, appealed to the party’s National Leadership and relevant party organs to officially recognise and affirm his victory, investigate alleged efforts to alter the election outcome, protect the democratic rights of party members whose votes produced the declared result and issue him the party’s nomination certificate as the lawful winner of the primary.
The protesters insisted that the integrity of the party’s internal democratic process was at stake and urged the leadership to address all grievances transparently to prevent further discontent ahead of the 2027 general elections.
