Senatorial Aspirant Drags APC, INEC, Karimi to Court over Kogi West Primary

Ibrahim Oyewale in LokojaThe last may have not been heard about the primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi West Senatorial District as an aspirant, Mr Samuel Aro has filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Lokoja Division, challenging the party, Senator Sunday Karimi and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over the outcome of the election.In the suit, Aro is questioning the validity of the party’s submission of Senator Sunday Karimi’s name to INEC. According to the suit, Aro is seeking a declaration that the Kogi West APC primary held on May 18, 2026, produced him as the winner, and that the submission of Karimi’s name to INEC by the APC on July 11, 2026 is null, void and ineffective. He is further asking the court to hold that since he has not withdrawn his candidacy, the party is bound to recognise him as its lawful candidate.Part of the reliefs the plaintiff is seeking also include an order directing INEC to accept and recognise his name as the APC candidate for the Kogi West Senatorial District in the 2027 general election. The development is the latest twist in a dispute that has continued to generate tension within APC leaders and supporters in Kogi West since the primary election was held. Senator Karimi was officially declared the winner of the primary election held on May 18, 2026. The Returning Officer, Isah Haruna, had disclosed that Karimi secured the party’s ticket after polling 51,665 votes. There were reports that Aro and others withdrew from the race prior to the exercise, a claim he has denied. The primary election was widely reported to have held upon the open endorsement of Senator Karimi as the consensus candidate by party stakeholders backed by Governor Usman Ododo.Amidst the controversy over an alleged falsification of the authentic results of the primary election, the APC National Working Committee (NWC), acting on the report of the Election Appeal Committee, affirmed Karimi as the duly returned candidate of the party and subsequently submitted his name to INEC for uploading on its candidates nomination portal.