19th February, 2024
By Jethro Ibileke/Benin
Amidst confusion, controversies, and two other rival claimants, the National Chairman of All Progressives Congress, APC Dr Abdullahi Ganduje has endorsed Dennis Idahosa as the validly elected candidate of the party for the Edo September 2024 governorship election.
In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Edwin Olofu, Ganduje also congratulated Governor Hope Uzodinma Election Committee for conducting what it described as a transparent primary commendable.
The congratulations came amidst confusion over the outcome of the primary election with the declaration of Anamero Sunday Dekeri as the third winner of the primary contest.
Dekeri, a member representing Etsako Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives was declared the winner by the Local Government Returning Officers for the governorship primary election.
Mr Babatunde Ojo who spoke on behalf of the local government returning officers, while announcing their result late Saturday night, said Dekeri garnered a total of 25,384 votes to defeat his closest rival Dennis Idahosa who scored 14,127 votes.
Ojo who was flanked by some returning officers, said : “Honourable Dekeri having met the requirements of the law and scored the highest valid votes cast have been declared winner of the election and returned elected.”
Three Candidates, One ticket
With this declaration, Dekeri is the third aspirant declared winner of the APC governorship ticket for the September 2024 Edo governorship election.
Governor Hope Uzodimma who is the chairman of the election committee, had Saturday afternoon announced Dennis Idahosa winner with 40, 453 votes, just as Stanley Ugbuaja, the official Returning Officer of the election, hours later announced Senator Monday Okpebholo as winner of the same election.
But in reaction to the controversies, the national chairman of APC endorsed the election of Idahosa, urged other aspirants to put aside their differences now that the primary election is over and support the winner to win the governorship election.
“I congratulate the winner of the Edo State governorship election. I want to equally commend and appreciate Governor Uzodinma’s election committee for their hard work and the transparent manner in which the primary election was conducted.”
Okpebholo, Dekeri fault Ganduje
But the Okpebholo kicked against the congratulatory message by the APC Chairman, describing it as a misleading and an attempt to give credibility to Idahosa’s victory.
Okpebholo, in a statement by his Director of Media and Publicity Godswill Inegbe, said Ganduje should not have hurriedly issued a congratulatory message to Idahosa because of the controversies that have trailed his emergence.
Speaking in the same vein, a group which described itself as the APC Stakeholders Forum, asked Ganduje led NWC to reject the declaration of Idahosa as the winner of the primary election.
While declaring their support for Anamero Dekeri as the winner of the primary election, the group faulted declaration by Uzodimma.
It noted that the Uzodimma committee lacked power to usurp the duties and responsibilities of local government returning officers in the primary election.
The Chairman of the Forum, Emmanuel Godwin, who addressed journalists in Abuja therefore said the declaration of Idahosa as winner of the election is null and void and should be disregarded in its entirety.