The Abia State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has insisted that Senator Nkechi Justina Nwaogu remains a bonafide member of the party, despite her defection to the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC). The party's claim, made in a statement on Friday, September 25, 2026, directly contradicts Nwaogu's camp, which says she has fully moved to the NDC.
APC's Position on Nwaogu's Membership
In the statement issued by Uche Aguoru, the APC publicity secretary in Abia State, and sent to Legit.ng, the party maintained that Nwaogu has not officially resigned her membership. Aguoru said the NDC's claim needed to be corrected for the sake of clarity.
The APC detailed that Nwaogu purchased the APC senate nomination form and participated in the party's senatorial primary election held on May 18, 2026. She scored 12,033 votes, emerging as runner-up, with Hon Erasmus Cishark serving as returning officer and chairman of the primary election committee.
The party said Nwaogu's name is contained in its membership register submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on May 10, 2026, and that there is no record of her resignation. It added that her registration and membership card details remain in both the party's and INEC's databases.
Supreme Court Ruling Adds Context
The APC's latest statement followed a ruling by the Supreme Court on Thursday, September 24, 2026. The court upheld an appeal by INEC affirming the validity of sections 77 and 84 of the Electoral Act, 2026 (as amended), which govern eligibility to contest primary elections and requirements relating to political parties' membership registers.
The ruling has since generated debate across the country, with reports indicating that politicians who contested a primary election in one party before defecting to another ahead of the same election cycle could be affected.
Aguoru said the party had no reason to believe the senator would knowingly place herself in a position of double registration, given her experience as a lawmaker. He called on the NDC to desist from identifying the lawmaker as its member.
Nwaogu's Camp Responds
Reacting to the APC's claim, Victor Kelechi Onyendi, special adviser on media and publicity to Senator Nwaogu, denied that she remains a member of the APC. In a statement on his Facebook page, Onyendi described Nwaogu as the NDC's senatorial candidate for Abia Central and said she remains active in the party.
Onyendi said the continued references to her by the APC reflected her standing in the political space. He urged the APC to focus on presenting its candidates and addressing what he described as its internal issues.
The dispute traces back to May 2026, when Nwaogu announced her resignation from the APC following the outcome of the party's primary election. She subsequently announced that she had joined the NDC, where she clinched the party's senatorial ticket for Abia Central.
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the APC raised an alarm over alleged destruction of campaign billboards belonging to President Bola Tinubu and the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu, in Bende local government area. The party described the act as intentional, citing its preliminary investigations into the matter.
