Nine aggrieved candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who were vying for the governorship primary in Edo State on February 22, 2024, have issued a warning that they will take legal action against the party if their concerns are not addressed.
The nine candidates chose to abstain from participating in the ward congress on February 4 and the local delegates congress on February 10. These congresses were conducted across the state’s 192 wards and 17 local government areas.
It is worth noting that the congress was not held in Etsako Central Local Government Area. The cancellation of this exercise was due to the alleged abduction of electoral officials who were en route to the local government for the ward delegates congress.
The nine dissatisfied candidates for governorship filed a complaint with the party’s appeal panel regarding the makeup of the party’s officials assigned to oversee the ward delegates congress in the state.
The aggrieved governorship aspirants are Deputy Governor Philip Shaibu, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, Anselm Ojezua, Felix Akhabue, Martin Uhomoibhi, Hajia Hadizat Umoru, Omosede Igbinedion, Earl Osaro Onaiwu, and Arthur Esene.
Expressing the concerns of the disgruntled candidates, Aslem Ojezua stated in an interview that they decided to abstain from participating in the local government congress. Their decision was based on the fact that the congress was conducted using the outcomes of the ward congress, which they perceived as flawed.
Ojezua highlighted that they had approached the appeal panel established by the party’s national leadership to address the injustice committed by Enugu State’s Governor Peter Mbah-led Congress Electoral Committee.
In his view, attempting to build upon a failed foundation would inevitably lead to a flawed outcome.
“We will follow the party machinery, and if they persist in what they are doing, we will continue to remind them about the danger involved in that level of arrogance and recklessness.
“We will take whatever steps available to us but at the moment we have an internal dispute resolution mechanism of the party. We are taking advantage of that, even though the party has not responded, but we will do our bit.
“If at the end the party didn’t listen to us, we will take any option available to us. It is when we exhaust all this that we can take legal action to protect our rights,” he said.
He urged their followers and party constituents to stay composed, guaranteeing that in due course, they would identify the individuals accountable for the party’s setbacks in Edo State.
