As controversy continued to trail the results of Saturday governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress in Edo State, the Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, said on Monday that the Independent National Electoral Commission would only reckon with the exercise conducted at the venue communicated by the national leadership of the party.
Onuoha said by the decision of the Supreme Court, only the national leadership of a political party and not the state leadership could determine the venue of a primary election.
According to him, in the Edo State case, the venue communicated to INEC by the APC national leadership was Lushville Hotel and Suites.
The PUNCH had reported that the Edo APC primary produced three ‘winners’.
The Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, who is the Chairman of the Edo State Primary Election Committee, announced Dennis Idahosa as winner at Protea Hotel.
The state Returning Officer, Stanley Ugboaja, held a parallel announcement, declaring Monday Okpebholo as winner.
Ugboaja started the announcement at Lushville but finished it at Pastor Osagie Iyamu house.
Also, Ojo Babatunde, who claimed to be representing the returning officers in all the local government declared Anamero Dekeri as the winner of the election.
The trio of Idahosa, Okpebholo and Dekeri are laying claim to victory.
The National Chairman of the APC, Abdullahi Ganduje, had congrulated Idahosa, who was declared winner by Uzodimma.
But the Edo State leadership of the party have rejected the results declared by Uzodimma, insisting that only the state Returning Officer could declare the winner.
On Monday, Dekeri, who was the third winner to emerge, stormed the national secretariat of the APC in Abuja demanding to be issued with a Certicate of Return as the winner of the poll.
Meanwhile, speaking on the APC primary in Benin on Monday, the Edo State REC said INEC monitored the exercise and would only reckon with results declared at the venue committed to it by the national leadership of the party.
Fielding questions from journalists, Onuoha said, “The Supreme Court has taken a decision on the monitoring of party primaries, that party primaries are duties of the parties.
“Our own is to supervise and in doing such supervision, the party will tell us the venue. It is not the state chapter of the party that will tell us the venue.
“The national body of the parties will write to INEC national chairman of the venue, and the date and the time of the primary, and that we have followed strictly.
“Any political party primaries that was not minuted to us by our headquarters, we will not monitor. We were notified by APC and we monitored the one we were invited to at Lushville Hotel. I was there.”
The REC warned aspirants and political parties to stop campaigning for the governorship election with immediate effect or face sanction.
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He said that the commission had yet to lift suspension on campaign, noting that parties and candidates were expected to begin campaigning on April 24.
Meanwhile, angry youths and women on Monday took over the APC party secretariat in Benin, demanding the sack of the State Working Committee led by acting Chairman, Jarret Tenebe, over Saturday’s primary.
The crowd, led by the youth leader of the party, Tony Adun, alias Kabaka, forced their way into the offices and brought out the furniture, bag of rice and other equipment, vowing to stay at building for seven days or till the exco was dissolved.
Adun said, “It is clear that the party excutive in the state is no longer working in the interest of the party, so it is time for them to leave.
“We are here in solidarity with Hon. Dennis Idahosa who the party has nominated. We call on party member to back Idahosa’s candidacy in the governorship election in September.
“As you can see, we are here in large numbers, youths and women, to show our displeasure over the way the exco handled the election.
“We heard that some people collected money from the opposition and some aspirants and want to use that opportunity to destroy the party. They did it before, they sabotaged and betrayed us in the election. What we are hearing now is that because their preferred aspirant did not win, they want to destroy the party.
“I want to send a message to the NWC that since the SWC can disobey what the NWC wanted, they need to be suspended from the party and if that is not done, nobody will enter this secretariat again. We all voted with our membership cards on the day of the election and we all voted for Hon Dennis Idahosa; they are trying to sabotage our efforts but we will not allow it.”
When contacted on the allegation, the State Publicity Secretary of the APC, Peter Uwadiae, said an official reaction of the party would be made on the development at the appropriate time.
Also, one of the three aspirants laying claim to victory, Dekeri, on Monday, angrily walked into the national headquarters of the APC in Abuja to demand a Certificate of Return.
Although he refused to address journalists after he exited the hall, a visibly angry Dekeri, who arrived at the secretariat in Abuja at about 1.30pm, was said to have had a 10-minute closed-door session with the National Chairman of the APC, Ganduje.
“You can see disappointment written all over his face. He came with a letter addressed to the NWC through the national chairman demanding they issue him his certificate of return having been declared winner of Saturday’s primary,” a source offered an explanation.
When contacted, the embattled acting chairman of the party in Edo, Jareth Tenebe, who was earlier seen declaring Okpebholo as their candidate in a viral video on Saturday, called for calm, saying only the leadership of the APC can declare the actual winner.
He said, “The party conducted primary and somebody emerged. So, within the next few days, you people (journalists) will know who won the primary. It is the National Working Committee that did the primary. So, there is a procedure in announcing the result. So, within the next few days, everything will be settled. That is the only thing I can say for now.”
Tenebe was however mum on the call for his sack.
Meanwhile, a former Commissioner for Communication and Orientation in Edo State, Andrew Emwanta, on Monday, announced his resignation from the APC following the controversial governorship primary.
In a letter to the Ward Chairman, Ward 7, Egor Local Government Area and made available to journalists on Monday, Emwanta said, “I am writing to formally tender my resignation from the membership of the All Progressives Congress, effective from today, the 18th day of February 2024.
“My decision to resign from the party stems from its lack of internal democracy, flowing from the flawed process of the just concluded Edo governorship primaries, which has left me with no confidence in the party’s leadership structure and sense of political ethos.
“It is indeed a sad decision for me to take at this crucial time, particularly, because l joined the party few months ago. But, it is an inevitable decision, since l still enjoy the inalienable right to freedom of association, (or dissociation), guaranteed under Section 40 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, as amended.
“I believe that my continued association with the APC would compromise my ability to support any decent candidate of my choice, as I would be compelled to unwittingly align with the party’s decisions, regardless of my personal convictions. To do otherwise will be termed “anti-party”. This was my grouse last year with my former party, the PDP.
“Moving forward, l wish to be an ‘Independent’ political player, who can freely support any candidate in future elections, based on their qualifications, integrity, and alignment with my values and beliefs. I am confident that this decision of mine is in the best interest of my life’s philosophy, social orientation and the political principles I hold very dear.”
