Edo Guber: Apprehension As Idahosa, Tony Kabaka Storm APC, Protest Against Governorship Primary

There was apprehension at the Headquarters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja on Saturday as a member of the House of Representatives, Dennis Idahosa and the Youth Leader of the party in Edo State, Anthony Edun, popularly known as Tony Kabaka led supporters to protest against the primary won by Senator Monday Okpebholo over alleged irregularities.

Arise News reports that three aspirants were laying claims to victory in primary conducted to produce candidate for the governorship election scheduled for September 21.

The protesters carried placards with inscription including, ‘Our mandate cannot be stolen or monetised’, ‘Mr President, call APC NWC to order’, ‘NWC, reward loyalty in Edo APC’ and ‘We say No to fictitious results.’ 

While threatening to drag the APC to court if justice is not done, Idahosa  appealed to President Bola Tinubu Ahmed Tinubu to call the National Working Committee (NWC) to order.

According to him, he has submitted a protest letter to the APC Governorship Appeal Committee, adding that he will take his time to go through the process after which he would proceed to court to fight for his right against the party.

Idahosa said, “I am not here to make trouble, I am a lawmaker but one thing is that we want is justice. Today, I might be a young man but it might be the children of NWC members tomorrow. We have to do the right thing, if we continue to do what is wrong as a country, we are not going to move forward. 

“So I am calling on Mr. President to call the NWC to order. Elections were held on February 17 what they did on 22 was just selection. I challenged one of the LGA returning officers to give me, show me a picture of him in the Local government Headquarters where he said he collated the results and he was just blabbing, there was nothing because I know that they were in the same Hotel in Benin, that’s where they wrote all the results.

“So my fellow party members, I am not here to make trouble, I am only here to seek justice, whatever they have done, if it is not properly managed, I have written yesterday to the appeal panel committee and I know they will do justice, even if whatever they did, I just want to go through the process, having exhausted the party’s resolve mechanism, I will go further, I will seek justice in the court of law and I will not allow this to stand.”

Also speaking, a lawyer and chieftain of the party from Edo State, who accompanied Idahosa alongside other party members, Bernard Ekun, said the party was trying to deliberately avoid APC from providing or getting a candidate for the election. 

According to him, when something is inconclusive, it invariably means some places have been identified for primaries to be done in those places, adding that sadly enough, first, nobody came to the field from the other end. 

He said, “The Governor who was in charge of the purportedly selection primaries said that it was going to be a fresh election. Between me and you, when you know the issue of INEC, there is supposed to be 21 days notices from INEC for that primary. Nothing of such and we are out of time.

“Are you people saying that the selection process you have done, which you called a fresh election should be acceptable to us? No. Our demands is that the 17 February 17 primaries stands. That is known to Law. What they have done is kangaroo selection. 

“What these people have done is that they have sold their responsibility, the excellence in them, they have sold as reasonable men. They have sold it for a Chinese Cuisine, they have sold it for egg fries. But if you want to go to the Bible, they have sold it for a pot of porridge. And it will not stand!

“People were in the hotel sleeping, how will they have been able to get a result? Even INEC did not observe this selection, kangaroo thing they said they were doing. So what you have seen  is that there is no election, we stand on 17th because that is the only one that is duly observe and fallen between the ambit of the law.”

Friday Olokor, Abuja

Follow us on: