IPAC to monitor 18 political party primaries, begin voter education

The Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC) in Anambra State, led by Chief Uche Ugwoji, has said that the group would monitor primaries of 18 political parties that were okayed to contest the November 6, 2021 governorship election in the state.

Ugwoji, who disclosed this in an interview with The Guardian in Awka, the state capital, yesterday, said that IPAC’s involvement in monitoring the primaries was to ensure that a level-playing ground was given to all aspirants to emerge as flagbearers of their parties through a transparent process.

He also pointed out that the council had concluded arrangement to organise seminar and voter education for the purpose of enlightening the political parties and their candidates on better ways to conduct violence-free, fair and credible primaries to produce party flagbearers without the involvement of cultists and thugs.

According to him, the exercise would help to provide the contenders with a forum to showcase and sell their manifestos to the voters to sway their opinions and votes and be able to fulfil at least 60 percent of their electoral promises.

On the recent Supreme Court’s affirmation of the judgment of the Court of Appeal endorsing the de-registration of 74 political parties by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Ugwoji described the judgment as a landmark, final and binding.

The State Chairman of the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), who spoke in company of the representatives of the People’s Redemption Party (PRP), African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Action Democratic Party (ADP), among others, also described the suit by the 74 de-registered parties as a distraction.

He said though 17 out of the 18 booth parties belong to the state chapter of IPAC, his leadership was prepared to accommodate the chairmen of the 74 de-registered political parties in its fold in the spirit of magnanimity.

The IPAC boss in the state asserted that INEC acted legally and constitutionally in the de-registration of the 74 parties that failed to win a seat.