Former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, has claimed that about 90 per cent of politicians currently holding public office in Nigeria would not retain their positions if the country practised genuine democracy.
Okorocha made the assertion during an interview with Arise News on Thursday, October 29, while reacting to a Federal High Court judgment that declared him the winner of the All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial primary for Imo West ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The former governor argued that Nigeria’s democratic process was undermined by the imposition of candidates, alleging that many politicians secured political positions without emerging through the genuine choice of the electorate.
“If democracy is practised the way it should be practised, 90 per cent of people holding office in Nigeria cannot hold office,” Okorocha said.
He maintained that the country’s political system had allowed individuals to occupy public offices without adequately reflecting the wishes of voters.
According to him, some politicians rise to power through political arrangements and influence rather than through credible electoral processes that give citizens the freedom to choose their preferred representatives.
Okorocha also insisted that his satisfaction with the court ruling went beyond his personal ambition to return to the Senate, describing the judgment as an important development for Nigeria’s democracy.
He said the decision was significant because of what he considered inconsistencies in the information circulated about the outcome of the APC primary election.
“My joy is not on the basis that I was declared a winner, but for the fact that so many misinformation were paraded in the news media,” he said.
The court, presided over by Justice Obiora Egwuatu, ruled that Okorocha won the APC primary conducted on May 18, 2026, for the Imo West Senatorial District.
The judge consequently ordered the APC to submit Okorocha’s name to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as its candidate for the senatorial election scheduled for January 16, 2027.
The ruling also restrained Governor Hope Uzodimma from continuing to present himself as the party’s candidate for the district.
The dispute arose after the APC and INEC recognised Uzodimma as the winner of the primary, with official figures reportedly crediting him with 230,464 votes against Okorocha’s 1,098 votes.
However, Okorocha challenged the outcome in court, insisting that documents from the primary election supported his claim to the party’s ticket.
The Imo State Government has rejected the judgment and indicated its intention to challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal, leaving the political contest subject to further legal developments.
Okorocha governed Imo State from 2011 to 2019 and represented Imo West in the Senate from 2019 to 2023.
His latest remarks have renewed discussions about the credibility of political party primaries, the influence of powerful political figures and the need for electoral processes that reflect the genuine preferences of Nigerian voters.
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