Benue ADC guber primary: Joseph Waya drags Herman Hembe to court

A fresh legal battle has erupted over the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship primary in Benue State, as one of the aspirants, Chief Joseph Waya, has dragged the party’s governorship candidate, Herman Hembe, to the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging the validity of his emergence.

In the suit, Waya is seeking to invalidate the governorship primary purportedly conducted between May 22 and 24, 2026, with the result declared on May 25, 2026.

According to court documents, the plaintiff contended that the primary election was not conducted by the competent organ of the party as required by the ADC Constitution. 

He argued that the exercise was conducted by a structure whose congresses had earlier been nullified by a court judgment delivered on April 29, 2026.

Waya further challenged Hembe’s eligibility to contest the primary, alleging that the former House of Representatives member was under a subsisting three-month suspension imposed by the Benue State Executive Committee of the ADC on March 27, 2026.

Part of the court filing stated that Hembe was, by virtue of Article 9(iii) of the party’s constitution, not eligible to be voted for at the time of the primary election.

The suit reads in part: “On the date of the said primary, the 2nd Defendant was under a subsisting three (3) month suspension imposed by the State Executive Committee of the 1st Defendant on 27 March 2026 and was, by Article 9(iii) of the Constitution of the 1st Defendant, not eligible to be voted for.”

The plaintiff also alleged non-compliance with party guidelines and maintained that aspects of the exercise were conducted outside the approved dates.

Before approaching the court, Waya and another governorship aspirant, Peter Adejoh, had separately petitioned the national leadership of the ADC, raising concerns over the conduct of the primary and calling for a review of the outcome.

The two aspirants also urged the party to constitute a fresh governorship electoral committee made up of persons who are neither indigenes nor residents of Benue State in order to guarantee neutrality, transparency, and credibility in any future primary process.