BY SULE TAHIR
A Senior officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC have confirmed that the ruling APC Gubernatorial candidate of Taraba state, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha is yet to be listed on its portal as the APC Governorship Candidate for Taraba State.
The officials said INEC had written to the Supreme Court to clarify its judgment if it had ordered a fresh primary election for Taraba State APC before listing Bwacha as a candidate for the governorship elections.
One of the officials also confirmed that some INEC staff in Taraba State were queried for participating in the fresh APC governorship primary election held on 11th February 2023 without clearance from the Headquarters in Abuja.
“INEC has not listed Senator Emmanuel Bwacha’s name as a candidate of the APC because we are waiting for clarification and interpretation of the Supreme Court Judgment, in the Judgment the Supreme Court did not expressly order a fresh primary election but different lawyers and politicians have come up with their interpretations. INEC will be guided by law.”
The National Secretariat of the APC had on the 14th February 2023 to INEC requesting that Bwacha’s name should be listed on the list of candidates.
” On the 15th February 2023 INEC amended the list of Candidates but refused to include Bwacha in the amendment, also on the 24th February 2023 INEC amended the list and included Senator Joel Ikenya candidate of Labour Party based on an order of a Federal High Court sitting in Jalingo which ordered a fresh primary election for the Labour Party but still refused to include APC candidate in Taraba State.
“Since the judgment of the Supreme Court and APC fresh primary, there have been two amendments on the list of candidates by INEC both of which do not include the name Bwacha as APC candidate. What some people are flying around on social media is the old list of candidates.
Although INEC is permitted to keep amending the list of Candidates as it keeps getting court orders until election day, as at the time of this report on Monday 5th of March 2023, INEC is yet to include Senator Emmanuel Bwacha’s name as APC candidate for Taraba state.
