By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
House of Representatives member for Apapa Federal Constituency, Hon. Dr. Adesola Samuel Adedayo, has petitioned the Primary Election Appeal Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) challenging the validity of the party’s primary election over what he described as “material and substantial irregularities” that vitiated the process.
The petition, dated Sunday, 17 May, 2026, followed the APC primary held on Saturday, 16 May, 2026, across the 10 wards of Apapa Federal Constituency.
Citing Section 84(14) of the Electoral Act 2026, Article 21(3) of the APC Constitution and party guidelines, Adedayo argued that irregularities in Wards A, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J rendered the results from those areas inconclusive and unreliable.
He alleged that the exercise was undermined by the admission of unregistered voters, failure to ensure accreditation and security, and the premature abandonment of voting, which he said disenfranchised thousands of party members.
He maintained that the breaches were coordinated and substantially affected the outcome of the primary.
On voter eligibility, Adedayo claimed individuals with “forged party registration slips” were allowed to vote without verification against the authenticated register submitted to INEC.
“The admission of forged voters is not a procedural irregularity; it is a deliberate breach of the foundational requirement that primary elections reflect the will of party members only,” he stated.
He added that his agents documented discrepancies, including inconsistent formats and mismatched serial numbers across the affected wards, supported by sworn affidavits, photographs and video evidence.
He further noted that some registered members were denied the right to vote, while unregistered persons allegedly voted freely.
He accused electoral officials of failing to maintain order and conduct proper accreditation, thereby creating what he described as a chaotic and unsafe environment.
He cited an incident at Ward H, Amusu Street, where about 3,000 of his supporters were allegedly attacked.
“An election conducted in an environment of violence, without accreditation, cannot be said to have been conducted fairly or lawfully,” he said.
Furthermore, Adedayo alleged that the process was abruptly abandoned at about 6:00 p.m. in the affected wards while votes were still being counted. He said electoral officers left without concluding the exercise or announcing results, disenfranchising over 3,000 registered members still in queue. “This is not a procedural mistake. It is a deliberate act that rendered the elections in those wards inconclusive,” he added.
He argued that the combined effect of the alleged irregularities distorted the outcome, inflating votes in some areas while suppressing votes in his strongholds.
Consequently, he urged the committee to nullify results in the affected wards and order a fresh primary under the supervision of the Independent National Electoral Commission. Alternatively, he called for the entire exercise in Apapa Federal Constituency to be declared invalid pending a fresh poll.
He also demanded sanctions against electoral officers accused of permitting forged slips, failing to ensure accreditation and security, and abandoning the process.
“The primary election… was marked by material breaches of the Electoral Act 2026, the APC Constitution and basic principles of electoral credibility,” he said, adding that he was prepared to present witnesses before the committee.
Copies of the petition were forwarded to the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, the Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Lagos State, the APC Lagos State Chairman and the party’s Apapa Federal Constituency Secretariat.
