A presidential aspirant of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP), Yakubu Kingsley, has approached the Federal High Court in Abuja to challenge the emergence of former Cross River State Governor, Donald Duke, as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
Key Highlights
- Yakubu Kingsley files suit challenging Donald Duke’s emergence as PRP presidential candidate.
- Kingsley alleges Duke was not a registered PRP member at the legally required time.
- Plaintiff claims irregularities and alleged over-voting occurred during the primary election.
- Court asked to nullify Duke’s victory and recognise Kingsley as candidate.
- INEC joined as a defendant in the suit.
- Federal High Court fixes June 22 for hearing of the case.
In the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1234/2026, Kingsley, through his counsel, D.A. Sulyman, instituted legal action against the PRP, Donald Duke, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the first, second, and third defendants respectively.
The aggrieved aspirant is seeking an order nullifying Duke’s emergence as the party’s flagbearer, alleging that the former governor was not a registered member of the party within the period required by law and the party’s regulations.
In the originating summons filed on June 10, Kingsley asked the court to determine whether Duke was validly elected as the PRP presidential candidate during the May 25 primary election, the results of which were announced on May 26, despite allegedly not being a registered member of the party as of May 4 when the PRP membership register was submitted to INEC.
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The plaintiff also challenged the validity of votes recorded during the primary election in several states, alleging incidents of over-voting.
According to court documents, Kingsley questioned the credibility of results from Bauchi, Gombe, and Kwara states, where the votes cast allegedly exceeded the number of registered party members.
He argued that in Bauchi State, where the party reportedly had 593 registered members, 760 votes were recorded. In Gombe State, 1,431 votes were allegedly cast despite only 348 registered members, while in Kwara State, 82 votes were recorded against a membership base of 55.
Yakubu Kingsley is seeking a declaration that Duke was ineligible to participate in the presidential primary on the grounds that he was not a registered member of the party at the relevant time.
He also asked the court to declare that Duke ought not to have been screened and cleared for the primary election, alleging that he failed to physically appear at the party’s national secretariat for the mandatory screening exercise.
In addition, Kingsley urged the court to nullify the primary election results in Bauchi, Gombe, and Kwara states due to the alleged irregularities and over-voting.
The plaintiff further prayed the court to declare him the lawful presidential candidate of the PRP, arguing that he fulfilled all stipulated requirements and remained a duly registered member of the party.
He also sought an order restraining INEC from recognising Duke as the party’s candidate and directing the electoral commission to recognise him instead.
In an affidavit supporting the suit, Kingsley stated that he is a registered member of the PRP with membership card number 2A8D8B20B2 and hails from Auchi III Ward in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State.
He told the court that he purchased the party’s expression of interest and nomination forms and paid a total of ₦20 million to participate in the presidential race.
According to him, he fulfilled all nomination requirements, secured the necessary endorsements, and physically attended the screening exercise held between May 15 and May 19, 2026, at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
Kingsley said he was subsequently screened and cleared to participate in the May 25 presidential primary.
Expressing surprise at Duke’s participation, he alleged that the former governor did not physically attend the screening exercise as required by party guidelines.
He further claimed that Duke’s participation violated INEC regulations requiring political parties to submit the names of registered members at least 21 days before conducting primary elections.
The plaintiff challenged INEC to produce the membership register submitted by the PRP on May 4 to establish whether Duke was a registered member at the time.
He also alleged that several party members had raised objections regarding Duke’s eligibility before the primary election but that the concerns were ignored.
According to Kingsley, the primary election was marred by irregularities and manipulation, resulting in inflated vote figures in some states.
He maintained that when allegedly unlawful votes are excluded, he emerges as the aspirant with the highest number of lawful votes.
Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has fixed June 22, 2026, for the hearing of the suit after hearing notices were issued and served on the parties.
The PRP had on May 23 screened and cleared three aspirants for its presidential primary election, including Donald Duke, economist Dr. Nnaoke Ufere, and Yakubu Kingsley, who was the African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate in the 2023 general election.
The party subsequently conducted its presidential primary on May 25 and declared Duke the winner the following day.
The court is expected to commence substantive hearing in the matter on Monday.
