A governorship aspirant of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Zamfara State, Mahdi Aliyu Mohammed, has petitioned the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over an alleged plot to prepare and submit a backdated report of the party’s governorship primary election.

Mahdi urged INEC to reject any purported report suggesting that another primary was held on May 28, 2026, and to rely on its original monitoring report.

In a petition dated October 19, 2026, and addressed to the INEC chairman at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja, counsel to the aspirant alleged that some party members, in collaboration with some of the aspirants, were planning to submit a report to facilitate the substitution of his name with that of another aspirant as the winner.

The petition described the alleged plan as an attempt to undermine the outcome of the May 22 primary and mislead the electoral commission.

According to the petition, the ADC conducted its governorship primary at Command Hotel, Gusau, on May 22, in accordance with the party’s guidelines and the electoral timetable.

It further stated that officials from INEC’s national headquarters and Zamfara State office monitored the exercise, during which Mahdi allegedly secured the majority of votes cast by accredited voters under the direct-primary process.

The legal representative claimed that INEC had prepared and submitted an official monitoring report to its headquarters, adding that a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the document had been obtained from the commission.

The petition said the report confirmed the date of the primary and Mahdi’s emergence as the winner.

It also argued that no subsequent ADC governorship primary had been scheduled, formally notified to INEC or monitored by the commission in Zamfara State after the May 22 exercise.

The petition alleged that a faction within the party intended to present another report as authentic to pave the way for substitution of the party’s governorship candidate.

Citing provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 and the Penal Code, the petition urged the commission to reject any purported report inconsistent with its original monitoring records.

Mahdi’s legal representative asked INEC to preserve and rely on the original monitoring report already in its custody and reject any subsequently submitted document. (Daily Trust)