House of Representatives member representing Akoko-Edo Federal Constituency, Peter Akpatason, has described Saturday’s attempted disruption of the Edo State governorship primary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Benin City, Edo State capital, by hired thugs, as strange to the APC fraternity in the state and stands condemnable.
The exercise ended in crisis as two aspirants were declared winners. Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State, who was the chairman of the election committee, had earlier declared Idahosa winner of the election with 40,453 votes, while his opponent, Senator Monday Okpebholo reportedly polled 100 votes. However, Dr Ugbaja Stanley Uzoamaka, the State Returning Officer for the primary election, declared Okpebholo the winner with 12,145 votes, while Idahosa allegedly scored 5,536 votes.
The APC National Working Committee (NWC) has said only the Uzodimma-led committee was authorised to conduct, collate and announce results of the primary election.
Speaking with The Guardian on Sunday, Akpatason, a fourth term serving member of the House of Representatives and Deputy Majority Leader of the House in the ninth National Assembly corroborated APC NWC’s clarification of the matter.
“What happened yesterday (Saturday), sending thugs to invade the collation centre, attack electoral officers and party faithful is unfortunate because it is not in our character. It is alien to us since we are not known for such act of political brigandage. It is criminal and highly condemnable”.
He called on security agencies to fish out and punish preparators in accordance with the law.
He added that: “It is heartwarming that the APC NWC has cleared the air by saying that as far as the Edo governorship primaries of our party, APC is concerned, only the Uzodimma-led committee was duly authorized to conduct, collate and announce the results. The primary election has been conducted and a winner has emerged. The winner is Hon Dennis Idahosa and he’s the duly returned flag bearer of APC for the September 21, 2024 governorship election”.
Citing the June 21, 2019 ruling of the Supreme Court on a similar scenario involving his nomination at the October 2018 APC National Assembly primary elections in his constituency, in which the apex court declared him (Akpatason) validly nominated at the end of a prolonged litigation, he affirmed that the process that produced Hon Dennis Idahosa as APC’s standard bearer at the weekend and his declaration by the authorized governorship primary election committee as the rightful winner, are inviolable in the eye of the law.
