Senator representing Delta North, Ned Nwoko, has warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) that the party risks political backlash and internal collapse in Delta State if the outcome of its Delta North senatorial primary is not addressed. Nwoko insisted that alleged irregularities in the process could have far-reaching consequences for the party in the state ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Speaking through his legal adviser, Chris Okobah, at a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, the senator alleged that the primary election was marred by manipulation, intimidation, and procedural violations. He described the exercise as fundamentally flawed and incapable of reflecting the will of party delegates.
Nwoko’s comment follows the APC senatorial primary for Delta North held on May 18, 2026, which produced former Delta State governor Ifeanyi Okowa as the party’s candidate for the 2027 elections. According to the official declaration, Okowa polled 113,309 votes, defeating incumbent senator Ned Nwoko, who was said to have secured 2,612 votes, while another candidate, Maryam Ali, reportedly polled 40 votes.
But the Nwoko camp has rejected the outcome, insisting that the figures announced do not reflect what transpired across the 98 wards in Delta North. Okobah said the exercise amounted to a “theatre of fraud,” insisting that available field reports, ward-level documentation, and agents’ reports showed that Nwoko had the support of delegates across Delta North.
“So, the president must be very careful to see that this is not the kind of person you push out. In the last election, three out of three senatorial districts in Delta State, Nwoko won his election. And it is even because of Nwoko that Okowa won re-election as governor because he came kneeling down begging Nwoko that he should work for him. That was why he won re-election. So, if they think they can now sideline him, I’m telling you, it would be a recipe for disaster,” Okobah said.
The legal adviser further alleged that the process was compromised before voting began, claiming that party officials and electoral handlers were influenced and that collation lacked transparency in several wards. Okobah argued that in several polling locations, accreditation and voting processes were either disrupted or not conducted transparently, adding that in some areas, results were allegedly written before voting began. He also accused unnamed political actors of using inducement, intimidation, and administrative influence to shape the outcome of the exercise.
Rather than heading immediately to court, the Nwoko camp said it would first explore internal party dispute resolution mechanisms, urging the APC leadership to review the process and consider submitted evidence. “We are not rushing to court for now. We want the party mechanism to address these issues. If that fails, we will explore all lawful options available to us,” he said.
The legal adviser maintained that the group remains committed to due process but warned that ignoring grievances within the party could deepen internal divisions in the party.
