A former Attorney General of Niger State, Barrister Adamu Usman, has taken the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the State Independent Electoral Commission to court over the substitution of his name on the ballot for the Mokwa Federal Constituency House of Representatives seat. Usman claimed that he had emerged as the consensus candidate for the seat but his name was replaced after the 2026 primaries. He described the action as an act of impunity and insisted that he had to challenge it in court to restore his name on the ballot.
According to Usman, his people and teeming supporters wanted him to still contest the election, prompting him to drag the party and the electoral commission to court. He noted that if a legal luminary like him shied away from challenging the action, nobody would muster the courage to do so. Usman's supporters in his federal constituency have inaugurated the Tinubu, Bago, Usman support group to sensitize the electorate to vote for the APC while fighting to get his name back on the ballot.
Usman revealed that similar incidents of name substitution had occurred in the past, citing examples in Lavun and Makun local governments. He expressed hope that the court would resolve the matter in his favor and that his name would be returned to the ballot. Usman emphasized the need to sensitize his people to believe that he is still in the race and that they should continue to vote for the APC.
The former Attorney General described his feelings after his name was substituted as "all-round anger per excellence" for everybody within Mokwa and the federal constituency. He noted that the idea of inaugurating the support group was hatched by the support groups themselves, who wanted to give him their kind support. Usman stressed that it was essential to challenge the impunity of the party and the electoral commission to ensure institutional growth.
Usman argued that if he and others with legal minds did not challenge the impunity of the party and the electoral commission, it would lead to a situation where the common man would have no hope. He emphasized that it was wrong for the party to jettison its rules in the middle of the game and bring in new and strange things. Usman declared that he and his supporters would continue to challenge the establishment to ensure that institutions are built on the rule of law.
The Director General of the Tinubu, Bago and Usman Support Group, Hon Hussaini Wabi, affirmed that the substitution of Usman's name had angered most of the supporters, but they now have hope that the name swap would be reversed. Wabi described Usman as a grassroots politician who has been in the system for long and has been helping people, including those not in the APC. He noted that even other party members would vote for Usman, and they are sensitizing their people to vote for the APC.
The case has sparked concerns about the level of impunity in Nigerian politics and the need for institutional reform. The outcome of the court case is being watched closely by stakeholders, who are eager to see if the court will restore Usman's name to the ballot. The development has also raised questions about the credibility of the electoral process and the ability of the APC to manage its internal affairs effectively.
Key points
- Barrister Adamu Usman sued the APC and the State Independent Electoral Commission over the substitution of his name on the ballot for the Mokwa Federal Constituency House of Representatives seat.
- Usman claimed that he had emerged as the consensus candidate for the seat but his name was replaced after the 2026 primaries.
- The case has sparked concerns about the level of impunity in Nigerian politics and the need for institutional reform.
