An aspirant for the Esan South Constituency seat in the Edo State House of Assembly, Barrister Victor Giwa, has approached a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja to nullify the outcome of the All Progressives Congress, APC, primary election for the constituency.
In a suit dated May 29, 2026, numbered ABJ/FHC/C’S/1078/26, Giwa, a lawyer, prayed the court for an order restraining Chief Sunday Oseizua Ojiezele, who was declared winner of the primary, from parading himself as the candidate of the APC for the 2027 election.
Giwa, through his lawyer, Mr Patrick Ocheja Okolo, SAN, said the the primary election for Esan South Constituency was marred by irregularities.
Ojiezele, APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, were joined as 1st to 3rd respondents, respectively.
Giwa prayed the court for the following reliefs: “An order restraining the 1st Respondent from parading himself as candidate of the 2nd Respondent for the Edo State House of Assembly’s seat in the 2027 General election in Edo State,
pending the determination of the substantive suit.
“An order restraining the 3rd Respondent from accepting, recognizing publishing the name of the 1st Respondent as the 2nd Respondent’s candidate for the Edo State House of Assembly Election in 2027 General election of Edo State pending the determination of the substantive suit.
“An order directing all parties to maintain status quo ante bellum as at 19th May 2026.”
Stating the grounds for the suit, the applicant stated that he participated in the primary held at the ward level and the LGA secretariat of Esan South East Constituency of Edo State.
He said the 2nd respondent, APC, neither conducted a primary or adopted a consensus candidate in the election on the said date but rather allocated figures to the 1st respondent, Ojiezele, and declared him as consensus candidate.
“The applicant was allocated zero votes against his name irrespective of the votes in the applicant’s favour in ward 3 4 8, 9 and 10 of the Esan South East Local Government Constituency exercise of the 2nd Respondent.
“The 1st Respondent did not emerge from any primary conducted nor consensus arrangement of the 2nd Respondent,” he stated.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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