Human rights lawyer and former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Chidi Odinkalu, has reacted to claims that the All Progressives Congress (APC) may be exposing itself to legal challenges over the conduct of its senatorial primary elections.
Odinkalu made the remark while responding to arguments raised by lawyer and social media commentator, Ekene Aninze, who alleged that the party’s handling of the primaries could trigger litigation ahead of the 2027 elections.
Reacting to the development, Odinkalu raised concerns over reports that judges who allegedly benefited from houses built by the government were involved in determining candidates for elections.
“You mean a political party had just set up judges for whom it built houses to pick and choose who will get tickets to be candidates of the party in the next election? That sounds potentially like a honey pot,” he wrote.
Earlier, Aninze had argued that the APC may have “shot itself in the foot” by adopting a process he claimed even the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would avoid.
According to him, the controversy began after the party reportedly sold nomination forms to aspirants who were later disqualified from participating in the primaries.
He further alleged that the APC withheld results of senatorial primaries conducted nationwide after issuing a directive that electoral committees could not declare outcomes until they had been reviewed in Abuja.
The lawyer argued that such a move could create grounds for legal disputes, especially if aggrieved aspirants challenge whether the party complied with its constitution, nomination guidelines, and provisions of the Electoral Act.
He maintained that future court cases may focus less on who won the primaries and more on whether due process was followed.
The comments have sparked debate online, with supporters and critics expressing different views on the conduct of party primaries and internal democracy.
The APC had yet to officially respond to the specific allegations at the time of filing this report.
The development comes as political parties intensify preparations and internal exercises ahead of the 2027 general elections.