Eight aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State have sued the party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the Federal High Court in Uyo over their alleged disqualification from the party’s State House of Assembly primaries.
The suit, marked FHC/UY/CS/104/2026 and filed at the Federal High Court, Uyo, listed the applicants as Asuquo Okon, Uko Johnson, Kennedy Akpan, Effiong Bassey, Nsunwara Osung, Noah Okon, Nyoho Jackson and Godwin Umontuen.
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The respondents are the Akwa Ibom State chapter of the APC, the party’s state screening appeal committee, the national leadership of the APC and INEC.
In the originating summons dated 18 May and filed through their counsel, Nsikak Ekpenyong and Uduak Ekanem, the applicants accused the respondents of breaching constitutional provisions and the Electoral Act in the conduct of the screening exercise for the 2026 State House of Assembly elections.
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PREMIUM TIMES reported that disqualified APC aspirants for the state assembly claimed that the President of the Senate Godswill Akpabio and Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom handpicked the party candidates for the assembly elections.
The aspirants asked the court to determine whether the respondents could lawfully disqualify them on grounds “unknown to the Constitution and Electoral Act” and whether failing to disclose reasons for their disqualification violated their right to fair hearing under Section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution.
They also challenged the validity of the screening exercise allegedly conducted on 11 May, arguing that it was held outside the official timetable issued by the APC National Working Committee, which fixed the screening period for 6 to 10 May.
The applicants further asked the court to determine whether, under Section 84(14) of the Electoral Act 2022, they were entitled to judicial redress if a political party failed to comply with its guidelines and timetable in the nomination process.
Declare our disqualification illegal, aspirants ask court
In the suit, the aspirants sought declarations that their alleged disqualification was unconstitutional, unlawful, null and void, insisting they were denied fair hearing and that the party imposed arbitrary criteria not recognised by the Constitution or the Electoral Act.
They also asked the court to set aside the purported disqualification and compel the respondents to clear them to participate in the APC State House of Assembly primaries scheduled for 20 May.
The applicants further requested an order compelling the respondents to release all screening reports, score sheets, minutes of proceedings, findings and recommendations relating to them.
They equally sought an interlocutory injunction restraining the respondents from conducting or proceeding with APC primaries in seven constituencies pending the determination of the suit.
The constituencies listed are Nsit Ibom, Ikono, Ibesikpo Asutan, Oron/Udung Uko, Etim Ekpo/Ika, Esit Eket and Onna.
The applicants also prayed the court to nullify any APC primaries already conducted in the affected constituencies on the grounds that they were unlawfully excluded from the process.
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They further demanded N100 million in general and exemplary damages against the first to third respondents for what they described as “unlawful, unconstitutional, illegal and oppressive acts.”
According to the statement in support of the originating summons, the applicants said they duly purchased and submitted nomination forms and complied with all requirements stipulated by the party before they were allegedly disqualified without explanation.
They alleged that the respondents acted outside the party’s approved timetable and denied them fair hearing.
No date has yet been fixed for the hearing of the matter.
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