Some chieftains of the Abia State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have sent petitions to the party’s National Executive Committee, NEC, alleging that the selection process of the three ad-hoc delegates for the party’s primaries in the state were rigged.
According to the aggrieved stakeholders, the three ad-hoc delegates’ election of the party was cancelled following certain irregularities and controversy over its conduct. A fresh election was billed to be conducted at a later date, but instead of it, a list emerged purported to be the names of those elected in an election, which they alleged, that never took place.
In one of the petitions endorsed by Chief Adolphus Wabara, former Senate President and Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, a former Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NNDC, who are both members of the party’s Board of Trustees, BOT, they alleged that no election was conducted and requested the national leadership of the party to reject whatever list that is sent to it. They further asked the NEC to direct proper conduct of the said election.
Similarly, Dr Eme Okoro, a former Secretary to the Abia State Government, SSG, petitioned the National Chairman of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, alleging that the guidelines for conduct of primary elections by the party were breached.
Reacting to the development, the Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Abia State Chapter, Barrister David Iro, debunked the allegation that the congress was held in the state, noting that no delegates congress was conducted anywhere in the state.
According to him, the dates that were fixed for the exercise were public holidays and thus the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, said that it will not work on those days, while the Nigerian Police said they did not even receive any official letter from the party, PDP, requesting for police presence and therefore both agencies did not monitor any election.
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The Abia State PDP Secretary explained that on the first day of the congress, the team from Abuja did not come, while the second day it was rescheduled was a public holiday.
Recall that there has been disaffection in the party over the allegation that the Governor of the State, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, was plotting to install his preferred aspirant, who is from Isiala Ngwa to become the party’s governorship candidate, against the zoning arrangement in the state.
