Two aspirants in the All Progressives Congress House of Representatives primary election for Otukpo/Ohinmini Federal Constituency, Lawrence Onoja Jnr and Andrew Abu, have formally challenged the outcome of the exercise, which produced Blessing Onuh as the party’s candidate.
The petitions were submitted at the APC secretariat in Makurdi, where both men accused the party of irregularities during the conduct of the primary held on Saturday. Onuh, daughter of former Senate President David Mark, was declared winner after the contest involving four aspirants.
Speaking to journalists, the aggrieved candidates alleged that election materials were manipulated and that the number of votes announced exceeded the total number of registered party members in the constituency. They also claimed that the exercise violated agreed zoning arrangements and was not conducted at designated ward centres, but at a hotel venue.
Both Onoja and Abu expressed confidence that the party’s appeal panel would review their complaints fairly, while warning that failure to address the issues could deepen internal tensions within the party in the area.
The dispute has also reignited political rivalry linked to the families of the major figures involved, as both sides have a history of electoral contests within Benue South politics.
