A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and relevant officials of the National Assembly to produce documents in a suit challenging the eligibility of the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Kingsley Chinda, to contest the 2027 Rivers State governorship election.
The order, granted by Justice Muhammed Turaki, followed applications by the plaintiff, Samuel Amatonjie, who is seeking judicial interpretation of the constitutional provisions governing political defections and eligibility for elective office.
Amatonjie is challenging the circumstances surrounding Chinda’s movement from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC, arguing that the lawmaker may not have completed the necessary steps to become a member of the ruling party before participating in its governorship screening and primary.
The plaintiff contends that the issue raises questions about whether Chinda was qualified to emerge as the APC’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election.
At Wednesday’s proceedings, the court granted applications for subpoenas compelling INEC, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Clerk to the National Assembly to produce records considered relevant to the case.
The documents sought from INEC include the APC’s membership register submitted to the commission and the letter through which the party notified the electoral body of its planned governorship primary in Rivers State.
The plaintiff is also seeking relevant records from the National Assembly, including certified copies of the House of Representatives’ Hansard covering proceedings between April 1 and June 2, 2026.
The legislative records are expected to assist the court in examining the circumstances surrounding Chinda’s alleged defection, particularly the timing of his formal notification to the House.
At the centre of the dispute are Sections 68 and 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
Section 68 addresses circumstances under which a member of the National Assembly may lose his or her seat after defecting from the political party on whose platform the member was elected. It provides exceptions relating to a division within a political party or a merger involving the party.
Section 177(c), meanwhile, requires a person seeking election as governor to belong to a political party and be sponsored by that party.
Amatonjie wants the court to determine whether, by May 9, 2026, when Chinda was screened and declared the APC governorship candidate, he had validly defected from the PDP and satisfied the constitutional requirements for nomination.
The plaintiff maintains that the documents are essential to establishing the relevant facts and enabling the court to determine whether Chinda’s political transition complied with the Constitution.
However, Wednesday’s proceedings did not proceed to the substantive hearing of the suit after counsel representing the PDP and Chinda requested additional time to respond to the plaintiff’s latest court filings.
Counsel to the PDP, Paul Daudu (SAN), and Chinda’s lawyer, Dike Udenna, told the court that they had only recently received the plaintiff’s response to their preliminary objections and needed time to examine the arguments before filing their replies.
The PDP had earlier filed a preliminary objection challenging the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to entertain the suit.
Speaking to journalists after the proceedings, Daudu said the objection had been filed on September 29, but the plaintiff’s response was served on the defence only on Tuesday.
He argued that the defendants were entitled to sufficient time to study the documents and prepare their response.
The jurisdictional objection is significant because the court may have to determine whether it has the authority to proceed with the substantive case before considering the plaintiff’s arguments on Chinda’s eligibility.
Amatonjie, however, maintained that the subpoenas were necessary to obtain official records from the institutions involved and establish the facts surrounding the dispute.
He described the suit as a public-interest action aimed at securing judicial clarification on the constitutional requirements governing political defections and electoral eligibility.
Following the submissions, Justice Turaki directed the parties to file and exchange their outstanding court processes and adjourned the matter until December 10, 2026, for hearing.
The latest development represents a significant step in the legal challenge to Chinda’s APC governorship ticket, although the court has not determined whether the lawmaker’s defection was valid or whether he is constitutionally qualified to contest the election.
The case is likely to attract considerable political attention in Rivers State as preparations gather momentum for the 2027 governorship election. Its eventual outcome could have implications for the APC’s electoral plans and the interpretation of constitutional provisions governing party membership, defection and the nomination of candidates.
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