•State chairman upbeat of victory
By Jude Opara, Abuja
As controversies continue to trail the just held Edo state governorship primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it monitored the authentic primary in line with provisions of the law.
INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner of Edo State, Dr. Anugbum Onuoha, stated this on Monday while addressing newsmen in Benin, the state capital.
Onuoha confirmed that officials of the Commission in the state monitored the exercise at the Lushville Hotel and Suite where INEC was invited to.
When asked which of the three parallel primaries conducted by the three factions of the party was monitored by INEC, Onuoha said he monitored the one the Commission was invited to in line with the law.
“The Supreme Court has taken decisions on the monitoring of party primaries, that party primaries are primary duties of the political parties.
“Our own is to supervise and in doing such supervision, the party will tell us the venue. It is not the state chapter of the party that will tell us the venue.
“The national body will write to INEC national chairman of the venue, and the date and the time of the primary, and that we have followed strictly.
“Any political party primaries that were not minited to us by our headquarters, we will not monitor.
“We were notified by APC and we monitored the one we were invited to at Lushville Hotel. I was there, that was where I went,” he said.
It could be recalled that three parallel primaries were conducted by the party, with Hon. Dennis Idahosa emerging winner of the result announced by the chairman of the election committee and governor of Imo state, Sen. Hope Uzodimma, at Protea Hotel, while Senator Monday Okpepholo emerged winner of the result collated by the returning officer of the election, Dr. Stanley Ugbuaja, at Lushville Hotel and Suite.
Anamero Dekere Sunday also emerged as a winner of the primary from Edo North.
Meanwhile, the acting chairman of the party in the state, Hon. Jarrett Tenebe said he is upbeat that the party will overcome the present situation and queue behind the candidate elected by a majority of the members of the party.
Tenebe who spoke to Peoples Daily in a telephone chat said he is convinced that the APC will reclaim the state in the September 21 governorship election.
