KEY POINTS

• At least 26 serving APC Reps lost return tickets and 14 aspirants were disqualified in primaries ahead of 2027 general elections.
• Rivers, Edo, Imo, Lagos, Kwara, Benue, Ekiti, Plateau and Cross River saw the sharpest internal fights, including a fatal Plateau shooting.
• Allegations of manipulation, consensus engineering and godfather imposition have triggered widespread litigation threats from displaced lawmakers.

The All Progressives Congress’s House of Representatives primaries have triggered the party’s most violent internal crisis in recent memory, with at least 26 serving lawmakers losing return tickets, 14 aspirants disqualified and one resident killed during a fatal shooting at a Plateau polling venue.

National Publicity Secretary Felix Morka confirmed the 14 disqualifications, saying the affected aspirants failed to scale the party’s screening exercise. Four of them are serving lawmakers from Rivers and Ebonyi, including Awaji-Inombek Abiante, Anderson Allison, Boma Goodhead and Iduma Igariwey.

Now the fallout has ignited threats of litigation across Rivers, Edo, Imo, Lagos, Kwara, Benue, Ekiti, Plateau and Cross River, with displaced lawmakers accusing governors, power blocs and godfathers of weaponizing consensus arrangements.

Fubara-Wike fight sharpens

Specifically, the Rivers primaries deepened the split between camps loyal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara and FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, with the party clearing Wike-aligned figures such as Felix Obuah and Senator Allwell Onyesoh while disqualifying former presidential aspirant Tein Jackrich and Fubara ally Tammy Danagogo.

Indeed, party sources accused the leadership of using screening to settle pre-2027 scores. “The screening process is being used to settle political scores ahead of 2027. It is no longer about competence or popularity,” one Rivers insider said.

Moreover, the disqualification list inflamed similar arguments in Edo, where House Leader Julius Ihonvbere lost his Owan ticket to Andrew Ijegbai. “I did not lose the election. They did not even come to the field. They wrote some meaningless results,” Ihonvbere said, vowing to appeal.

Alia routs Akume, Plateau turns deadly

Furthermore, the Benue primaries delivered a sweep for Governor Hyacinth Alia’s camp over allies of Secretary to the Government of the Federation George Akume, with serving lawmakers Terseer Ugbor and David Ogewo among those who lost. Akume’s wife Regina, however, kept her Gboko/Tarka seat, and former Senate President David Mark’s daughter Blessing Onuh won Otukpo/Ohimini for the APC.

Additionally, the Plateau primary in Mangu turned fatal after security personnel allegedly fired into crowds protesting electoral officer delays, killing resident Sani Abdullahi. Outspoken Plateau lawmaker Yusuf Gagdi also lost his renomination bid to John Tongshinen.

Today, the violence has pushed APC stakeholders to demand a national review, with several aggrieved aspirants in Ekiti, Imo, Kwara and Ogun openly threatening litigation. Kwara’s Tijani Kayode reportedly scored zero votes against AbdulRazaq-backed Rafiu Ajakaye, while Ogun’s Isiaka Ibrahim accused Governor Dapo Abiodun of forcing an “affirmation” in favor of an anointed candidate.

Consensus engineering exposed

Meanwhile, consensus arrangements drove outcomes across Katsina, Kebbi, Kano, Borno and Kogi, sidelining incumbents in favor of governor-preferred candidates. Lagos Assembly Speaker Mudashiru Obasa even displaced Reps incumbent Hameed Adewale in Agege Federal Constituency.

However, not every incumbent fell. Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu held Abia’s Bende ticket, Akin Alabi and Tolulope Akande-Sadipe kept their Oyo seats, and Imo’s Miriam Onuoha publicly accepted her loss, pledging loyalty to Governor Hope Uzodimma. Cross River’s Ikom/Boki Federal Constituency primary delivered Victor Abang 10,850 votes after consensus talks collapsed.

Together, the disqualifications, the consensus impositions, the Plateau shooting and the multi-state litigation threats sketch the messiest APC primary cycle since 2014. Whether the National Working Committee can absorb the appeals without losing structures will determine how cohesive the party heads into 2027. Yet for now, the warning from displaced incumbents is unambiguous, the fight has only just started, and the courts are the next venue.