Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja
A governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Anambra State governorship election, Dr. Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, has said he is heading to the court to challenged the outcome of the party’s primaries
Ubah, who faulted the whole process of the primary election, said the delegates list used for the PDP primary election was tampered with.
According to him, the delegate list used for he primary was different from the certified true copy of the delegates list he obtained from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He also alleged that the declared winner of the contest, Oseloka Obaze was not eligible to contest the PDP primary election because the party’s NEC did not grant him a waiver as required under the circumstances.
Speaking with journalists yesterday in Abuja, Ubah said he had exhausted all the internal mechanisms available for conflict resolution without success, before his decision to head for court.
“We will seek redress in court. Four of us the aspirants had said if the party chose any us that we will support that person so long as it is not Obaze. So as it stands now we are left with no option than to proceed to court to seek redress.
“The unlawful process that took place on August 28, 2017 in the guise of primary election has not only jettisoned the appropriate electoral college, it has also jettisoned the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, the Electoral Act 2010, the constitution of the PDP 2012 and the PDP Electoral Guidelines as amended.
“It is a total illegality, nullity, sham and an insult to the sensibilities of every faithful PDP member natonwide, right-thinking Anambrarian and by extension, Nigerian.
“In the quest for justice, I submit myself to fight this illegality and injustice for my sake as well as that of anyone who aspires to contest under the party’s platform and I hope that justice will prevail in the end.
“I will, in subsequent media chats and as things unfold, reveal more information on the sham and complete illegality that was tagged a primary election conducted by the PDP,†he said.
On the allegation that he did not resign from the Labour Party before joining the PDP, Ubah said: “No constitution in Nigeria stops me from supporting other parties, including the APC. I was with the Labour Party before the I resigned to join the PDP.â€
On whether the PDP can still win the Anambra governorship election with the crisis trailing its candidacy,
The PDP governorship primary for the Anambra State governorship election was held on August 28, with a former Secretary to the Anambra State Government, Ambassador Oseloka Obaze, emerging victorious after polling over 600 votes to defeat other aspirants including Ubah who scored 94 votes.
Ubah recalled that all the aspirants in the primary election, with the exception of Obaze, condemned the entire process and requested that the primary election be cancelled.
He also said he was approached by the former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, urging to accept the outcome and support the winner to forge a common front but that he told him that he aggrieved over the level of impunity perpetrated during the contest.
