Sir Ceejay Henry Ezebuiro, the Nigeria Democratic Congress candidate for Ideato Federal Constituency in Imo State, has alleged that some party leaders are working to revoke his nomination and replace him with a person who did not contest the primary.
Ezebuiro spoke at a news briefing in Owerri on Saturday. He said the Independent National Electoral Commission had already published his name as the party’s candidate for the 2027 National Assembly election, based on the result of the May 28, 2026 primary.
He credited the Electoral Act 2026 with making it harder for party officials to change candidates once their details have been uploaded by INEC. “Without this new Electoral Act, some party leaders would have collected my mandate through the backdoor. The law has protected the mandate of the people and has made it difficult for anybody to wake up and change the result of a primary election,” he said.
According to Ezebuiro, three party leaders demanded money from him in connection with retaining the ticket. He said he paid them a total of N50 million, N5 million transferred in two instalments to a company owned by one of the leaders and N40 million given to the three men in dollars before learning that INEC had already uploaded his name. A later demand for N150 million was refused, he added.
Ezebuiro claimed that after he declined the further payment he was told at a meeting to approach a former governor and plead to be allowed to fly the party’s flag. He said the former governor had already promised the ticket to another person who did not take part in the primary. He further alleged that a wealthy businessman he described as a “computer czar” wanted his brother-in-law to become the NDC candidate and was prepared to offer a large sum for the ticket.
The candidate said some party leaders, acting through a proxy, had gone to court in an effort to reclaim the nomination. He warned that attempts could be made to intimidate or threaten him if the legal route failed, and urged the public to hold those he named accountable should anything happen to him.
Ezebuiro questioned how the NDC could deliver the change it promises if practices such as alleged extortion and attempts to replace candidates who won primaries continued within the party. He said such conduct was particularly pronounced in the Southeast and risked weakening the party’s standing in the region.
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