The Federal High Court in Gombe has nullified the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election conducted on May 16 for the Balanga/Billiri Federal Constituency, ruling that the exercise did not comply with provisions of the Electoral Act.
The court, presided over by Justice Vera Ibrahim, also ordered the APC to conduct a fresh primary and barred Ali J.C., who emerged as the winner of the disputed exercise, from participating in the rerun.
Justice Ibrahim nullified the primary after finding that Ali’s name was not contained in the APC membership register submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) within the period prescribed by law.
The court based its decision on Section 77 of the Electoral Act, which requires political parties to submit their membership registers to INEC at least 21 days before conducting party primaries.
Ali was reportedly admitted into the APC 16 days before the primary, falling short of the statutory timeframe required for his name to be reflected in the relevant membership register.
The judge held that the central issue was not merely whether Ali was a member of the APC, but whether the party complied with the statutory requirement governing the submission of its membership register.
Justice Ibrahim further ruled that neither the APC nor INEC produced sufficient evidence establishing that Ali’s name was included in the relevant register submitted within the legally prescribed period.
The court also relied on recent decisions of the Supreme Court to distinguish ordinary disputes over party membership from cases concerning compliance with statutory requirements for the preparation and submission of party membership registers.
Consequently, the court held that compliance with the Electoral Act in the preparation and submission of party membership registers was a matter subject to judicial scrutiny.
It therefore nullified the May 16 primary and directed the APC to conduct a fresh primary election in compliance with the law, while excluding Ali from the rerun.
The judgement has created fresh uncertainty over the APC’s representation in the Balanga/Billiri Federal Constituency ahead of the 2027 general election.
Speaking after the judgement, counsel to the plaintiff, Ibrahim Aliyu, said the decision reaffirmed the importance of political parties complying with the Electoral Act in the conduct of their internal elections.
