The leadership of the All Progressives Congress, APC has been warned to redress the crisis rocking the Akwa Ibom State chapter or risk annulment of the outcome of its presidential, governorship and legislative election.
Former minister of Petroleum and elder statesman Chief Don Etiebet on behalf of APC Party faithfuls in Akwa Ibom State in a press briefing, Wednesday in Abuja said that the consequences of conducting primaries with an illegal delegate list other than the validly conducted primaries witnessed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC may spell doom for the party as the entire election which benefitted from the process will be null and void.
He said, “it remains clear that our Party in Akwa Ibom State may not be in the position to present any validly nominated candidate in Akwa Ibom State except the issues are redressed immediately.
“We hasten to warn, that the Akwa Ibom State challenge of using delegates that were not voted for, in line with the extant Electoral Laws if not addressed, the same delegates maybe used for the Presidential primaries. Surely if that happens then the Presidential primaries run a risk of not producing a validly nominated candidate in line with the Electoral Laws. This should not happen.
“We fail to see what anyone stands to gain should this fate befall our great Party in Akwa Ibom State.”
Chief Etiebet cited an instance where a decision taken by the Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the party was unceremoniously withdrawn from the court by the present leadership even when their actions in office were fully ratified by the National Convention
“Presently, we are all living witnesses to the fact that our Party has been constrained to seemingly conduct primaries that are not consistent with the provision of Section 84 (1) of the Electoral Act which states.
“A political Party seeking to nominate candidates for elections under this Act shall hold primaries for aspirants to all elective positions which shall be monitored by the Commission”
“In line with this provision the Commission shall, in monitoring primaries, only recognize delegates that emerge from Congresses duly monitored by the Commission.”
“To clear the coast for our Party to decide its fate properly, we decided not to dwell anymore on the issues in the court room of the Court of Appeal and have now decided to withdraw forthwith from participating in further proceedings at the Court of Appeal in respect of Sen. John James Akpanudoedehe’s Appeal. Happily, he has respected our opinion to withdraw the appeal, in the hope that the entire matter be submitted to the Party to review, and address based on the facts and circumstances on ground.
“We are all aware that the Panel sent from the National Headquarters of our great Party arrived the Victor Attah International Airport in a Private jet and was received by the Party’s South South Zonal Secretary. Thereafter they rode in convoy in a bus and were to go to the authorized INEC recognized Venue at Sheergrace Arena for the conduct of the gubernatorial primary election where all the accredited delegates had gathered.
“Along the way, the Panel members objected to going to Sheergrace Arena Venue saying they were directed from Abuja to go to a Venue at No. 6 Ekpo Obot Street in the town which was unknown to the Party and even INEC and Police to be the Venue for the conduct of the primary. This was resisted by the Party members who had followed the Bus from the airport, saying the authorized Venue was at the Sheergrace Arena. This resulted in some disagreements that lasted for more than two hours. In order to avert violence, they all agreed to go to the DSS Director’s office for safety of persons and materials.
“Meanwhile, the CP and the INEC REC who were waiting for them in their offices linked up and went to Sheergrace Arena the Venue of the primary to wait for the Panel to arrive to conduct the primary election. When the Panel members did not go to the Venue, a telephone conversation ensued between the INEC REC Mr. Mike Igini and the Director of DSS in the presence of the CP who was also at the Sheergrace Arena Venue. It was heard that the Director of DSS asked Mr. Mike Igini to speak with the Chairman of the Panel who was with him in his office. During the telephone conversation the Chairman of the Panel told INEC REC that they were too traumatized and tired to conduct any more Primary election that day and that he had told other gubernatorial aspirants that the Primary election was postponed. Mr. Mike Igini went further to confirm with the Panel Chairman that he would not conduct any primary election again that night before he, Mr. Mike Igini announced to the delegates that the Primary election had been postponed and then left the Sheergrace Arena Venue as well as the CP.
“The whole of this episode and the telephone conversation between Mr. Mike Igini, the INEC Resident Commissioner, the Director of DSS and the Panel Chairman is on tape.
Unfortunately, the Panel members were surreptitiously drafted to another venue by certain people to proceed to purportedly conduct gubernatorial primaries without the presence of the Commission at about midnight when all the Party faithfuls and delegates had since dispatched following the announcement of the postponement of the Governorship primaries by the INEC Resident Commissioner of Akwa Ibom State. This is quite contrary to the provisions of Section 84(1) of the election Act and cannot be allowed to stand.
“We therefore take this opportunity to appeal to the leadership of our great Party to intervene and have the situation redressed by directing the conduct of proper gubernatorial primaries in line with Section 84 (1) of the Electoral Act immediately before it is too late.”