The just concluded rerun primaries elections conducted at Zamfara North Senitorial District has faced several criticisms from divers angles, one of the frontline Contestants for the Senitorial zone, Alhaji Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi has declared an open challenge to the exercise and announced plans to undertake legal actions against the manner the rerun primaries was carried out in the zone.
He made the announcement at Taula Arena in Gusau where all dignitaries from the Zone alongside members of WAMBAI Shinkafi Democratic Front gathered to unanimosily agreed that, there was no APC rerun primaries elections held in the zone.
They described what transpired across the Zamfara North Senitorial District as an orchestrated administrative ambush, characterized by complete subversion of party guidelines, blatant disregard of national electoral legislation, and the unlawful fabrication of phantom election results.
Making known his stance, Alhaji Sani Shinkafi said, the blatant violation of standard electoral operations, original, serialized, and security-printed result sheets (Forms EC8A/EC8B equivalents) and official party registers were systematically withheld across the designated voting wards of Birnin-Magaji, Shinkafi, Kaura Namoda, and Zurmi. Instead, unauthorized and photocopied sheets were surfaced at unauthorized locations hours after party members had dispersed. These directly violates Section B(iii)k-L (which mandates that candidate scores be correctly entered on the APC official result sheet, and explicitly states: "Any result not recorded on the official result sheet shall be void and shall not be accepted"). It also breaches Section C(vii) paragraph (a) governing the proper handling and collation of original copies of senatorial result forms.
No accreditation exercise took place. APC membership cards and biometric/voter identification were neither verified nor tallied against any official, NWC-certified party membership register. Tens of thousands of validly registered party members who converged across the four LGAs were denied their fundamental franchise, rendering any purported tally statistically fraudulent and non-existent.
This runs contrary to Section B(i) (Qualifications to Vote, requiring presentation of a valid membership slip cross-checked against the register and physical accreditation at the designated ward) and Section B(iii)f,g,h (mandating accreditation by APC membership registration slip and application of indelible ink) after verification.
The election management team deliberately created acute logistical confusion by providing conflicting timelines, unannounced venue alterations, and an intentional information blackout. Stakeholders and aspirants' campaign organizations were intentionally kept in the dark regarding movement of officials, arrival schedules, and official collection points.
There was Weaponization and Hijacking by Armed Actors and Security Formations, the designated aggregation and voting locations were besieged and actively hijacked by unauthorized
armed state and non-state actors, including irregular security details and heavily armed soldiers operating outside lawful electoral directives.
Legitimate party members and accredited agents violently intimidated and driven away with gunshots to ensure absolute control over the venue by designated political interests. It goes contrary to Section B(iii)a, e-h (which set strict timelines for the commencement and closure of accreditation between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM, and voting procedures).
This is also a direct violation of Section 96(5) & (6) of the Electoral act 2026, which prohibits maintaining, organizing, or equipping any group or individual (including armed private security or vanguards) for coercion or providing security during elections.
It also violates Section 97(1) of the Electoral act 2026, (prohibiting threats of force or violence) and Section 132 of the Electoral act 2026, which makes the use of force, violence, restraint, or fraudulent devices to impede the free use of votes a criminal offense punishable by fine or imprisonment.
Additionally, Section 27(3) of the Electoral act 2026 restricts the deployment of the Nigerian Armed Forces strictly to securing the distribution/delivery of materials and protecting officials, prohibiting partisan weaponization.
The exercise was marred by controversies, based on which 2 candidates were declared. The Chairman of the Committee who is a retired military man and a friend to one of the candidates declared Sen Sahabi while a member of the Committee declared Sen Tijjani Yahaya.
I will make it very clear to all that, there was never any consensus arrangement between Wambal and Sen. Tijjani or any aspirant. This is necessary so as to dispel the rumors being bandied about.
It is a known fact that I am a gentle man who has tremendous respect for the rule of law and constitutionalism, and I am determined to pursue my rights through legitimate means rather than resorting to thuggery and attitudes that are unbecoming of the status of a senatorial aspirant.
There must be immediate Nullification of the Exercise and a formal declaration that the purported APC Zamfara North Senatorial District Primary Election held across Birnin-Magaji, Shinkafi, Kaura Namoda, and Zurmi Local Government Areas was irregular, invalid, null,void, and of no legal consequence whatsoever.
An immediate directive setting aside, discarding, and refusing any submission or transmission of the name of the purported winner/declared candidate to INEC as the standard-bearer for the Zamfara North Senatorial District.
I recommend an order directing the conduct of a fresh, transparent direct primary election across the four constituent LGAs of the Zamfara North Senatorial District, strictly monitored by INEC and conducted by an untainted, duly authorized panel appointed by the NWC, he said.
The state Coordinator of WAMBAI Shinkafi Democratic Front, Alhaji Yusha'u Mada said the organization have unanimosily agreed with one voice that there was no rerun party Primaries elections in Zamfara North Senitorial District, describing the exercise as a mare show of interest from divers factions in All Progressive Congress in Zamfara.
He urged all members of the political organization to remain calm and supportive as arrangements are on the way to address the undemocratic exercise displayed on Monday, November 2nd at Zamfara North Senitorial District.
Other dignitaries from the Senitorial District representing the 42 wards who were presence at the gathering affirmed the dishonesty, misguiding and fraudulent act displayed at the just concluded rerun primaries in Zamfara North Senitorial District, declaring unflinching support for Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi.
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