Just in: Sam Onuigbo Rejects Abia Central APC Primary Result, Petitions Appeal Committee Over Alleged Irregularities

A former member of the House of Representatives and aspirant for the Abia Central Senatorial District ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Rep. Sam Onuigbo, has formally petitioned the party’s National Appeal Committee over alleged irregularities and breaches that trailed the party’s senatorial primary election held on May 18, 2026.

In the petition addressed to the Chairman of the APC Abia Central Senatorial Primary Election Appeal Committee and copied to the party’s National Chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, and National Secretary, Surajudeen Ajibola Basiru, Onuigbo described the exercise as a “botched primary election” marred by exclusion of party members, absence of electoral officials, and alleged allocation of votes in areas where no voting reportedly took place.

The petition, titled “Irregularities, Breach of Electoral Process in Abia Central Senatorial District Primary Election,” expressed disappointment over what the aspirant described as the party’s failure to uphold internal democracy despite adopting the direct primary option.

According to him, party faithful had welcomed the direct primary system with optimism, believing it would allow members to actively determine the party’s candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.

“It became obvious that some desperate and overzealous politicians who are sold to the old ways of impunity and gangster strategies hacked the process and allocated votes, even in wards where no actual balloting took place,” Onuigbo stated in the petition.

He urged the appeal committee to investigate what he termed “illegal exclusion” of party members from the process and called for a review of the outcome of the election, insisting that fresh primaries should be conducted in areas where there was no evidence of public participation.

The former lawmaker disclosed that a member of the seven-man National Assembly Primary Election Committee, Chief Uche Nwosu, visited his ward, Ibere Ward 11 in Ikwuano Local Government Area, during the exercise.

To support his claims, Onuigbo attached reports and testimonies from several wards across the Abia Central Senatorial District where party members allegedly said no election was conducted.

In Oloko Ward 2, Ikwuano LGA, party members reportedly gathered for the exercise, but neither electoral officials nor officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed up.

A similar complaint emerged from Usaka Ward in Ikwuano LGA, where party faithful alleged that no electoral officers, INEC officials, or security personnel arrived at the designated center throughout the exercise.

Party members from Ward 2 in Osisioma Ngwa LGA also claimed they spent personal funds on transportation and waited for hours without any election taking place.

Other affected areas listed in the petition included Okporo Ahaba Ward 1, Osisioma Ngwa Ward 8, and Osisioma Ngwa Ward 9, where residents similarly alleged that no voting process occurred despite large turnout of party members.

Onuigbo questioned the authenticity of the results eventually announced, asking where the figures declared by Hon. Thomas Nkoro allegedly originated from, since, according to him, elections did not hold in many of the affected wards.

“In view of these flagrant violations of the Electoral Act and APC election guidelines and directives, I hereby reject the purported result of the election,” the petition read.

The APC senatorial aspirant consequently appealed to the party leadership to urgently intervene and restore confidence in the integrity of the party’s internal democratic processes in Abia State.

See the petition below:

In a related development, supporters of Rep. Sam Onuigbo, under the aegis of the Ambassadors of SIO Angels, Umuahia North Chapter, have paid a solidarity visit to the lawmaker amid the lingering controversy surrounding the Abia Central Senatorial Primary election.

The group said they visited Onuigbo to brief him on what they described as the “true life experience” of events that unfolded during the APC senatorial primary election, insisting that the process was manipulated against the aspirations of genuine party members.

Speaking during the visit, the Coordinator of the group, Henry Okezie, alleged that the election was rigged and could best be described as “broad daylight robbery.”

According to him, members of the Ambassadors of SIO Angels mobilized massively and turned out in large numbers to support their principal despite what he described as deliberate attempts by some party stakeholders to disenfranchise them.
He maintained that the group remained resolute in its support for Onuigbo, whom he described as a leader with capacity and credibility.

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Also speaking, APC Woman Leader Ezeleke Ward, Hon. Nnenna Aaron maintained that due to what she described as Onuigbo’s towering political influence and reputation, some individuals became threatened and allegedly resorted to what she termed “shoddy deals” that characterized the Abia Central Senatorial Primary election.

She further claimed that several persons trusted by Onuigbo betrayed him during the exercise, adding that the outcome of the primary did not reflect the will of party faithful across the district.

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Another female member of the SIO Ambassadors and the Woman Leader Afugiri ward, Ulumma Ohadiugha also expressed disappointment, stating that many individuals who had earlier pledged loyalty and support to Onuigbo allegedly connived with opposing interests to work against him on the day of the election.

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Contributing, another member of the group; State Co-ordinator Clergy Forum of SIO Ven. Happy Onuoha stressed the need for sincerity and integrity in choosing representatives for the National Assembly, insisting that only straightforward and credible leaders should be entrusted with the mandate of the people.

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Responding, Onuigbo thanked the SIO Ambassadors for their steadfastness, loyalty, and commitment to what he described as good representation and responsible leadership.

The former lawmaker reiterated that issues surrounding the Abia Central Senatorial Primary election remain unresolved, assuring his supporters that he would pursue necessary steps to ensure that what he calls the Abia Central Senatorial Primary election travesty is addressed and reversed.

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The group in solidarity chorused in this tune 👇👇

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