A group in Abuja, the Elections Transparency Group (ETG) has cautioned
the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) of the danger of not
fielding a governorship and other candidates in the 2023 general
elections in Ebonyi State.
The group said gone are the days when political parties can conduct
primary election, cancel it to conduct fresh one just to satisfy
vested interests.
The ETG said in a release issued on Thursday and signed by its
Convener, Dr. Kazeem Adekunle, that the best option before the PDP was
to have accepted the result of May 29, 2022 primary election of the
party in Ebonyi State that produced Dr. Ifeanyi-Chukwuma Odii as the
governorship candidate.
The group said unless the PDP National Working Committee has a motive
of making sure that the party does not participate in the 2023 general
elections in Ebonyi State, there should be no reason anyone will
contemplate jettisoning a primary election duly monitor by the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
ETG said with the position of INEC affirming that its report of the
Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District APC primary, as submitted to
INEC headquarters in Abuja, was final, it should be clear enough that
no one can upturn the results of the May 29, 2022 primary election of
the PDP in Ebonyi State.
The same way APC cancelled already conducted primary in Akwa Ibom
North-West Senatorial District was the way PDP said it cancelled the
primary election in Ebonyi State.
Also, the same way INEC in its report validated the APC primary for
Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District was the same way INEC
affirmed that of Ebonyi State.
Therefore, if INEC is insisting that it will not recognize Senator
Godswill Akpabio, who emerged from the APC fresh primary in Akwa Ibom,
it is certain that INEC will also not recognize Senator Obinna Ogba as
PDP governorship candidate as well as others who emerged from the
party’s rescheduled exercise of June 4 and 5, 2022 because the
primaries were not monitored by INEC.
Most importantly, Federal High Court, Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, has
nullified the June 4 and 5, 2022 exercise and declared Dr. Odii as the
authentic governorship candidate of the party.
It therefore behoves on the PDP to put its house in order and act in
accordance with the Electoral Act 2022, else, the party risks not
having candidates in Ebonyi State.
