The All Progressives Congress (APC) held its House of Representatives primary elections across 360 federal constituencies between Saturday and Sunday. The process, meant to determine the party's candidates for next year's general elections, faced multiple disruptions. In Katsina State, aspirant Ahmed Sale Junior alleged he was arrested and detained by DSS operatives for four hours before the primary in Mani/Bindawa Federal Constituency, preventing him from participating. He claimed the winner, Jamila Abdu Mani, was declared with 20,000 votes while he received 1,000, despite not voting. The Katsina State Government denied involvement, with Director General of Media Maiwada Danmalam stating Governor Dikko Radda has no constitutional authority over the DSS.
In Plateau State, conflicting results emerged from the Pankshin/Kanke/Kanam Federal Constituency primary. Returning officer Nandom Andrew Kura declared incumbent Yusuf Adamu Gagdi winner with 29,207 votes on Sunday. Another returning officer, Daspan Ishaya, later announced Dr. John Tongshinen as winner. The exercise in Pankshin was delayed due to the absence of returning officers, sparking protests. One person died during the unrest. Aspirants in several states withdrew from the race, rejected results or boycotted the process. Some venues were not publicly known before the exercise. In constituencies where consensus candidates were selected, many aspirants rejected the outcomes, citing lack of transparency.
A protest letter dated May 17, 2026, addressed to the APC National Chairman, called for a transparent and inclusive process in line with party guidelines. It was signed by former Kaduna State Speaker Yusuf Zailani, former senator Danjuma Laah, northern activist Yerima Shettima, and Sani Abdulkadir Dakace. The Senate primaries began Monday, following the conclusion of the House primaries.
Ahmed Sale Junior was detained by DSS before an APC primary and later assigned 1,000 votes despite not participating, while Jamila Abdu Mani was declared winner with 20,000. If votes can be allocated to non-participants, the credibility of the entire primary process is undermined. Nigerians who rely on party primaries to produce legitimate candidates now have reason to question the authenticity of APC's election outcomes. The incident in Katsina sets a troubling precedent for how security agencies may be perceived to influence internal party contests.
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