There was a twist yesterday to the candidacy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the November 16 Anambra State governorship election.
A Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt ordered the PDP and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to recognise the candidate elected by the Ejike Oguebego-led faction of Anambra State PDP.
Senator Andy Uba won the primary.
But Tony Nwoye won the primary conducted by the Ken Emekeyi-led faction of the party.
Both congresses were held last Saturday in Awka.
PDP Chairman Bamaga Tukur yesterday gave the certificate of return to Nwoye as the party’s flag bearer.
Senator Andy Uba told the court presided over by Justice H.A. Nganjiwa that the primaries that produced him as the candidate followed the laid down procedures. Joined in the suit as defendants are the PDP national leadership and INEC.
The suit was filed before last weekend’s primaries. Oguebego, the state secretary of the PDP, Chief Gilbergt Okoye, and the Legal Adviser, Chucks Okoye sued for themselves and on behalf of the State Executive Committee of the PDP.
Justice Nganjiwa ordered that the result of the primaries conducted by the Ejike Oguebego-led executive, where Uba emerged as the candidate, should be upheld, pending the hearing and determination of the suit by the applicants.
He said the PDP and INEC should accept the results that emerged from the wards and state congress, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice or hearing and determination of the motion to set aside the interim order.
The judge said: “The first and second defendants are to forthwith comply with the order of this honourable court made on the 26th of August, 2013.”
Prior to the ruling, the court gave an exparte order restraining both the INEC and PDP from dealing with the Ken Emeakayi faction, pending the hearing of the main application. The court adjourned the matter till tomorrow.
However, at the meeting of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC) in Abuja, Tukur pronounced Nwoye the winner of the primaries and governorship candidate, following the report of Katsina State Governor Ibrahim Shema, his Gombe counterpart, Ibrahim Dankwambo, and Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba, who monitored the primaries.
Nwoye was yesterday presented with a certificate of return by the national chairman.
The presentation came just as the Uba brothers, Andy and Chris, shunned the summon extended to them by the leadership of the PDP.
Also summoned alongside the Uba brothers were Chief Benji Udeozor and Mrs. Tonia Nwankwo. They were ordered to appear before the party’s leadership at 10am yesterday. None of them honoured the invitation.
They were summoned to explain their roles in the conduct of the August 24 parallel primary election through which Andy Uba emerged as PDP candidate.
Shortly after collecting his certificate, Nwoye told reporters that he remained the authentic candidate of the party.
The Southeast zone also insisted that Nwoye is the party’s candidate.
The zone’s position was made known during its Zonal Executive Committee meeting in Enugu yesterday.
Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, Governors of Ebonyi and Abia states Chief Martin Elechi and Theodore Orji, House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha, Senator Hope Uzodinma and former PDP National Chairman Vincent Ogbulafor, among others, attended.
The Southeast PDP Publicity Secretary, Ali Odefa, who read the communique at the end of the meeting, said the zoning arrangement for all PDP’s National Working Committee given to the Southeast Zone had been retained.
He, however, stated that elections for the positions would take place, adding that people would be advised not to contest for positions that were not zoned to their states.
According to Odefa, the leadership of the party passed a vote of commendation on people from the Southeast zone that held positions in the NWC of the party in the past.
source: nigerianeye
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