Politics
House Speaker: We Feel Betrayed, Deputy Speaker, Others Tell APC
Frontline aspirants for the position of the Speaker for House of Representatives on Wednesday stormed the secretariat of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to register their displeasure over what they described as “imposition of consensus candidates” ahead of the 10th Assembly inauguration.
The ruling APC zoned the seat of Speaker to popular Kaduna lawmaker, Tajudeen Abass, while the reps-elect from Abia State, Benjamin Kalu, clinched the Deputy Speaker slot.
But following backlash from other aspirants and their allies, the ruling party played down its decision saying the selections were “not cast on stone.”
The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Felix Morka, disclosed that the nominations of former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godwill Akpabio, and Abbas Tajudeen can still be changed as every party member is free to contest elective positions.
But some of the aggrieved lawmakers vying for the position of Speaker rallied themselves and stormed the national headquarters of the ruling party, seeking an explanation to the adopted zoning formula.
The delegation, which was led by Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ahmed Idris Wase, held a crucial meeting with the Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led National Working Committee shortly after their arrival.
In attendance were Sani Jaji (Zamfara), Yusuf Gagdi (Plateau); Muktar Betara (Borno), Mariam Onuoha (Imo), Sada Soli (Kastina); Femi Bamishile (Ekiti), Abubakar Nakraba (Nasarawa) and Ahmed Jaha (Borno).
While accusing the leadership of the ruling party of betraying the trust of the lawmakers through its sudden imposition of candidates, Wase lamented that the APC leadership did not even deem it fit to consult with them before taking its decision.
He said, “You recall in one of the meetings which you (Adamu) summoned us to the Villa with the vice president. You told us to step down and wait for a zoning arrangement. While doing that, as politicians, we slowed things but everybody continues the fight to get the favour of our colleagues. Some of us have tried also to reach out to members of the NWC and critical stakeholders around the country to ensure that we have their buy-in.
“Unfortunately, you also told us to slow down further because of the governorship election so that the party will not be distracted while we wait for another meeting that will be convened. That meeting didn’t come to fruition. Those of us who are here aspiring were not called for that meeting. (Instead) what we saw on social media was (that position was) micro-zoned to particular individuals, saying these are the people that had been picked by the party.
“As I speak to you, Sir, I want to say categorically that none of us here was approached or consulted even for a second to seek our opinion on what was going to be done. While trying to convince ourselves it was one of social media reports, we saw the spokesman of our party on television confirming that there was actual negotiation or consultation that resulted in the list (of consensus candidates) produced. It is unfortunate.
“Your Excellency, we feel betrayed by that action. We feel as if our contributions are not recognized and that we are not members of this family. We feel that we have given our best but now the best is no longer needed.”
Reacting to the lawmakers, the national chairman of the APC called for restraint and understanding, stressing that they are still consulting with stakeholders.
Adamu also argued that the party had previously warned many of the aspirants at a previous meeting to allow the president-elect, NWC members and other stakeholders take a decision before raising their hope.
He noted, “We have listened to you and don’t intend to open discussions right now in respect of your submissions. When you listen to the release from this office, we did say very clearly that we would endeavour to do more consultations to carry along with us the greater number of members of this great party.
“There is nothing we do that may not be challenged here and there. But let us be able to attend the best possible means to consult with people and give them their right of fair hearing before we can say we are changing positions or not. We will re-invite all Senators and House of reps-elect in due course after the National Assembly election. By the time we have invited you to the last meeting at the banquet hall, a number of you have started canvassing for these positions you are interested in. I remember vividly, I did advise that the meeting was not to talk about zoning.
“I want to thank you for not coming with this kind of “Wuru-wuru underground” and didn’t follow the backdoor to talk to us. But you chose to come very openly. Nigerians will hear better what we have just said. I plead with you in good conscience to give us a little time to take a good and better look at your presentation and open our ears and eyes the more before we can come with the finality of your submission and the outcome of it.”
Prof. Amupitan gave the warning on Saturday, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, during the South-South Zonal Readiness Assessment and Interactive Staff Engagement organised ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He said insecurity remained a potential challenge to the electoral process but stressed that the Commission would not allow threats against its personnel to undermine its constitutional responsibilities.
“Insecurity may pose a challenge, but our collective constitutional resolve is far stronger. Let me again send a clear message from Port Harcourt: anyone who attempts to threaten, intimidate, or harm our ad-hoc staff, NYSC members, or permanent personnel will be brought to justice under the full weight of the law,” he said.
The INEC Chairman, who was accompanied by National Commissioners, directors and technical aides, disclosed that the South-South engagement was the fifth in a series of zonal assessments, following similar exercises in the South-West, North-West, South-East and North-East.
He explained that his physical presence across the geopolitical zones reflected the Commission’s field-first approach, emphasising that electoral integrity must be established through effective operations at the grassroots.
According to him, the assessment would cover operational preparedness across the 123 Local Government Areas in the six South-South states.
On election security, Prof. Amupitan said INEC had moved away from reactive security arrangements traditionally activated around election day to a proactive, intelligence-driven framework known as the “ICCES Tentacle”.
He explained that the framework was designed to extend inter-agency security coordination from national and state headquarters to local government areas and Registration Area Centres, including remote communities.
He identified three critical pillars of the framework as mapping and mitigating security threats, protecting electoral personnel and infrastructure, and guaranteeing safe access to polling units.
The INEC boss said the security arrangement would provide comprehensive protection for electoral personnel, technological infrastructure, including Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) devices and server infrastructure, as well as voters.
He added that the framework was intended to ensure that every polling unit, irrespective of its geographical location or history of security challenges, remained safe and accessible for the exercise of democratic rights.
Prof. Amupitan disclosed that the South-South security architecture comprised approximately 60 major operational formations, headquarters and state commands operating under the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES).
The network, he said, brings together military, naval, air, police and other security and intelligence agencies across the six states.
“Together, this integrated multi-agency network represents the operational backbone that guarantees intelligence-led protection across every riverine creek, coastal axis, and land-based polling unit in the Niger Delta,” he stated.
Providing an overview of the region’s electoral significance, the INEC Chairman said the South-South had the fourth-largest voting bloc in the country, with 15,823,550 registered voters, representing 15.30 per cent of the national register.
Rivers State alone, he said, accounts for 3,736,434 registered voters spread across the 23 local government areas.
Alhaji Abubakar made the demand following revelations that some INEC registration officers allegedly abused their access to the voter registration system to introduce irregular records into the database.
In a statement issued by his Director of Strategic Communications, Mr Phrank Shaibu, the former vice-president described the development as a serious breach of the Commission’s internal safeguards and raised concerns about the integrity of the electoral process.
He urged INEC to identify the officials implicated in the alleged misconduct and explain what disciplinary or legal measures had been taken against them.
Alhaji Abubakar also called for an independent forensic audit of the preliminary voters’ register to establish the scale of the alleged manipulation, identify affected records and determine how the questionable entries were introduced into the system.
He further insisted that INEC preserve all relevant voter records, image files, system access logs and electronic audit trails to prevent the destruction or alteration of evidence before an independent examination could be conducted.
The former vice-president also demanded that the Commission disclose the identities of companies contracted to produce sensitive election materials ahead of the 2027 polls, arguing that transparency was essential to building public confidence in the electoral process.
INEC’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Dr Lawrence Bayode, had earlier disclosed during a television interview that some registration officers across the country allegedly used their official login credentials to introduce irregularities into the voters’ database.
Dr Bayode explained that the Commission’s Automated Biometric Identification System helped identify questionable records and establish how some irregularities entered the system.
He, however, clarified that not all suspicious photographs were AI-generated, as some resulted from poor registration procedures.
The development followed public concerns over suspected AI-generated photographs, alleged duplicate entries and other inconsistencies discovered in the preliminary voters’ register published online on October 26, 2026.
INEC has maintained that the published document is a preliminary register and that it is reviewing questionable records ahead of the certification of the final Register of Voters.
The controversy has intensified calls for greater transparency and accountability in the management of the voters’ register as preparations gather momentum for the 2027 general elections.
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