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Coalition of political parties lauds Enugu council poll

By Lawrence Njoku, Enugu
07 November 2017   |   1:39 am
A coalition of 37 political parties in Enugu State yesterday endorsed the outcome of the November 4 local council election in the state.This was contained in a statement by the state Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), John Nwobodo.

A coalition of 37 political parties in Enugu State yesterday endorsed the outcome of the November 4 local council election in the state.This was contained in a statement by the state Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), John Nwobodo.

According to the coalition, the late arrival of materials in some places delayed the poll, but extending the voting period to 5:00p.m solved the challenge.He described the election as credible and meeting the minimum requirements of international best practices.

But the Hope Democratic Party (HDP), Adonys Igwe, dismissed the endorsement as a ruse, stressing that the political parties that authored the statement “did not produce any candidate for the election.”Igwe maintained that the election remain “a charade in the history of politics.”

Meanwhile, the Women wing of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, has attributed the performance of the party to the poor leadership of the state Chairman, Ben Nwoye.

The party’s women leader, Queen Nwankwo, told journalists after their meeting that: “Leadership failure in the state APC was the cause of the problems in the state. She alleged that there was a disconnect between the leadership and the grassroots.

“The woman leader and the Youth Leader, Ikechukwu Oloto, who had mobilised before the poll were methodically left out, leaving the two major organs of mobilisation porous, hence the poor performance.

“The women wing of the APC in the state is in total support of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffery Onyeama, as the leader of the party and supports his efforts to reposition the party for greater performance,” she said.

In a statement by its state Chairman, Augustine Nnamani, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) commended Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for providing a conducive atmosphere for the successful conduct of the election.

The statement added: “There were few skirmishes and isolated cases of attempts to hijack electoral materials, but these incidents were too
minute and not widespread to affect the outcome of the election.

“We commend the commission for its neutrality throughout the period, beginning with the issuance of notice of election on August 1, 2017. Never in the history of local government elections in the state had there been a commission that left its door opened to the political parties. He added: “The PDP would not be distracted by the antics of those who are unpopular and had pre-knowledge of their defeat at the polls.”

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