By Rayyanu Bala

Last week, there was a sponsored write-up on some social media platforms alleging that the election of Senator Ahmed Aliyu Wadada as the APC governorship candidate in Nasarawa State will not stand. The basis of the argument is the alleged non-issuance of a Certificate of Return by the party.
But a simple question arises: What exactly is the practical significance of the non-issuance of the APC Certificate of Return to Senator Ahmed Aliyu Wadada when INEC has already published his name as the APC governorship candidate for Nasarawa State?
The APC National Secretariat issued Certificates of Return to only six of the 28 candidates under the APC platform. The process was ongoing before a directive was issued to halt the issuance. The directive was reportedly given not because of any issue with the candidates, but to enable the National Secretariat to concentrate on uploading the candidates’ details to the INEC portal in order to meet the deadline.
Otherwise, Wadada could have received his Certificate of Return by now.
We all know that Wadada won the APC governorship primary held in May 2026 with 195,285 votes. The result was publicly announced by the party’s primary election committee, which declared him the winner and the APC’s candidate.
More importantly, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) subsequently published the particulars of candidates nominated by political parties for the 2027 governorship elections. Ahmed Aliyu Wadada was listed as the APC governorship candidate for Nasarawa State.
Therefore, if the argument is that the absence of a physical APC Certificate of Return automatically means that Wadada is not the party’s candidate, such an argument is, to say the least, misplaced.
The straightforward position is this: APC submitted Wadada’s name to INEC, and INEC published him as its governorship candidate.
On the allegation of “double membership” of political parties by Wadada, the claim is equally questionable. Either the author or the sponsor of the mischievous write-up does not know what he is doing, or both are unaware of the facts.
How can anyone, at this stage, allege that Senator Wadada simultaneously belongs to both the SDP and the APC? Wadada tendered his resignation from the SDP more than a year ago, precisely on August 19, 2025, and subsequently submitted his return letter to the APC on September 2, 2025.
There is also another important political reality that some of Wadada’s opponents must face.
Wadada polled 195,285 votes to defeat all the aspirants who contested under the APC alongside him. Even though everyone has the democratic right to question a process they believe was improperly conducted, that is part of the political process. However, the outcome of an election cannot simply be rewritten because a contestant remains dissatisfied with the result.
Normally, in Nigeria, there is hardly any election, whether primary or general, that comes and goes without grievances. If I win, the election is free and fair; if I lose, the election was not free and fair. Those who still believe that the primary election that produced Wadada as the APC candidate was not free and fair should brace themselves and face reality.
As things stand, INEC’s published list identifies Ahmed Aliyu Wadada as the APC candidate for the Nasarawa State governorship election.
That is why the Certificate of Return issue should not be exaggerated beyond what the law actually provides.
A certificate can document a political party’s decision. It does not, by itself, erase an already submitted and published names.
The proper questions, therefore, are not simply:
“Where is Wadada’s Certificate of Return?”
Rather, the proper questions are:
Has APC submitted Wadada’s name to INEC?
Has INEC published Wadada as APC’s candidate?
Those are the questions that should matter.
At the stage to which the APC has gone, it is unfortunate for anyone to continue believing that Wadada’s name will be replaced with his own. Such a person should understand that this is unrealistic.
What we should all understand is that waiting for any eventuality that could lead to Wadada being replaced as the APC candidate is nothing more than a tall dream. Nothing will happen to Senator Wadada that could lead to his replacement. He will continue to remain in the race, in good health and high spirits, and, of course, work towards victory in 2027.
Wadada will remain strong and capable.
In God we trust.