“Cancel Abia Guber Primary Now” …Aspirant Tells Oshiomhole

0
707

A governorship aspirant on the platform of the APC in Abia State, Prince Paul Ikonne, has called for the cancellation of the just concluded gubernatorial primary in his home State in the overall interest of justice and peace in the party.

 

 

Prince Ikonne, in a petition sent to the APC National Chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, on Thursday, urged the former governor of Edo State to use his good office to declare that a fresh gubernatorial primary be held in Abia State as soon as possible.

He also appealed to Oshiomhole to declare that the register sent down by the national headquarters of the party be used to conduct fresh gubernatorial primary.

The former governorship candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) claimed that the panel sent to conduct the primary compromised by authorizing the use of an already “manipulated, doctored and altered register.”

 

 

He said though the APC national headquarters had sent down a comprehensive party register containing list of eligible party members to vote at every ward in the state, it was jettisoned.

Part of the petition read: “I am Prince Paul Ikonne, a founding and stoic member at the All Progressives Congress since inception and one of the aspirants of the just concluded gubernatorial primaries which was held on the 2nd day of October, 2018.

 

 

“I hereby bring to your attention the electoral irregularities, atrocities and injustices in the recently concluded gubernatorial primaries in Abia State perpetuated by APC‘s Electoral Commtttee Chairman (Abia State) in collaboration with the State’s Party Chairman and his associates which usher in one Uche Ogoh as the party’s flag bearer in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

“Regrettably, this undermines our great party’s tenets, principles and your well meaning efforts at conducting an impeccable and credible primary election across the country.

“For your further enlightenment, the State gubernatorial primary was greeted with great enthusiasm that the election will be credible, free and fair. However, the contrary was the case as the election was marred by malpractices, fraud and irregularities based on the following facts.

“This outrageous decision by the chairman of the electoral committee in collaboration with the party chairman to use another register other than the authentic register sent by the national headquarters was carried out in spite of the fact that party members such as myself and so many others were against this illegality and abnormality.

 

“This action by the chairman of the electoral committee and the State party chairman is unbecoming, disgraceful and disheartening at this stage of our democracy in view of our party’s manifesto and incessant fight against corruption that such anomalies can be happening.”