A governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party in Cross Rivers State, Wilfred Bonse, has announced his withdrawal from the race.
Bonse said he took the decision as the Cross River chapter of PDP refused to clear him to contest for the party’s primary election scheduled for today (Wednesday).
He further asked that the party refund the N21million he used to procure gubernatorial forms, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
He added that he had also made his request known in a letter and submitted to the National Chairman, PDP, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, which was received and acknowledged at the party’s National Secretariat, Abuja.
Bonse said he was withdrawing to contest the election on the platform of another party, as all avenues to seek justice in PDP proved abortive in an attempt to deny him participation in the primary.
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“Having exhausted all avenues of consultation and appeal within the party without success, I am withdrawing my ambition to contest for gubernatorial election for Cross River State on the platform of PDP.
“I am hereby defecting from the PDP to another political party with my followers who are in their hundreds along with their followers by extension.
“I had hoped for a level-playing field that will see the emergence of the best man for the job. An individual that will swing power from the hands of the ruling APC to PDP in Cross River State, but going by my experience, I was obviously wrong.
“That is why I requested for a full refund of all sums paid by me in respect of my botched expression of interest and nomination forms for participating in the primaries of the party totalling N21,000,000″, the letter stated.
The letter was titled, “Notice of Withdrawal of Interest to Participate in the Governorship Primaries of Cross River State”.
He also copied the party’s National Organising Secretary, Financial Secretary, National Publicity Secretary and Deputy National Secretary.
Bonse in Abuja linked his demand to “unfair treatment” from the party to deny him participating in the forthcoming governorship primary in Cross River.
“I am requesting the party to refund the sum of N21million I paid for the expression of interest and nomination forms I bought.”
On his next line of action, Bonse said it would be communicated in the next 24 hours, adding that he was consulting with stakeholders.
