Hon. Sam Onuigbo, an aspirant for the Abia Central Senatorial ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has challenged those behind alleged media attacks against him to explain their roles in what he described as the “whimsical allocation of votes” during the party’s disputed May 18 primary election.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, the former House of Representatives member accused unnamed party figures of sponsoring attacks against him after he questioned the credibility of the primary election results. He urged those behind the attacks to stop further damaging the image of the APC in the South-East and instead assist the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) in explaining the outcome of the exercise.
Onuigbo said those responsible for the controversial exercise were now uncomfortable because details of what he termed a “ballot bazaar” in the Abia Central senatorial primary were beginning to emerge. The reaction followed a petition by a group claiming to be leaders of the APC in Abia Central Senatorial District. The group had accused Onuigbo of attempting to destabilise the party ahead of the 2027 general elections through allegations of irregularities in the primary.
But Onuigbo insisted that the figures announced from the exercise raised serious questions. According to him, one aspirant was allegedly allocated 36,935 votes, while two others reportedly received 11,457 and 5,833 votes respectively. He questioned how such figures were generated in a primary he claimed did not hold in most wards across the six local government areas in the senatorial district.
“Let them help the national leadership of our great party make sense of this puzzle. In a senatorial district with about 56,860 registered members, how did the architects of the confusion arrive at 36,935 votes for a single candidate when no election held in most wards?” he queried.
Onuigbo also challenged those behind the exercise to explain how a certificate of return was allegedly issued to the declared winner despite claims by the national leadership of the APC that no such document had been printed for any candidate except President Bola Tinubu. The former lawmaker further cited a petition reportedly submitted by former senator Nkechi Nwaogu to the APC national leadership, complaining that no official arrived at her Osisioma Ngwa Ward 2 or anywhere in Osisioma Ngwa Local Government Area to conduct the primary.
He said the controversy had already caused reputational damage to the party and worsened internal divisions within the APC in Abia State. According to him, the conduct of the primary had also triggered political consequences, alleging that Nwaogu had since left the APC over her exclusion from the process.
Onuigbo accused some actors within the Abia APC of attempting to import what he described as the Peoples Democratic Party’s “culture of impunity” into the ruling party. He called on the APC leadership to thoroughly investigate the confusion surrounding the Abia Central senatorial primary and ensure accountability for those involved.
