Former Niger attorney general challenges APC over substituted election candidacy

Former Niger State Attorney General Adamu Usman says he sued the All Progressives Congress and the state electoral commission after his name was allegedly replaced following the party’s 2026 primaries for Mokwa Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives. Usman, a former Speaker of the Niger State House of Assembly, told Arewa PUNCH that he had emerged as the party’s consensus candidate but was not listed for the election. He said he went to court to seek the restoration of his name on the ballot after supporters urged him to continue the contest.

He described the substitution as an act of impunity and said legal practitioners had a responsibility to challenge actions that bypass established political procedures. Usman said his supporters had inaugurated the Tinubu, Bago and Usman Support Group while the legal case was being pursued. Usman said the group was also working to reassure voters that he remained in the race and asking them to support the APC.

He expressed confidence that the court could reverse the substitution, referring to previous disputes in which returned and replacement candidates had contested the same nomination. He said the decision to challenge the matter was driven by concern about the effect of unchallenged party decisions on political institutions. According to Usman, allowing parties to change candidates after primaries without consequence could weaken confidence in the electoral process and leave ordinary citizens without an effective remedy.

The former attorney general said the substitution had angered supporters in Mokwa and across the federal constituency. He argued that political parties should follow their own rules rather than introduce new arrangements after a primary has been conducted. Hussaini Wabi, director general of the support group, said members remained hopeful that Usman’s name would be restored.

He described Usman as a grassroots politician and said the group was informing residents that it intended to reclaim the seat for the APC. The source material does not provide the court’s case number, the APC’s response or a date for judgment.