Nigeria’s ruling party, the All Progressives Congress on Monday ordered for a fresh governorship primary to select the party’s candidate for the November governorship election in Bayelsa state.
National Chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, said this at the end of the party’s National Working Committee meeting in Abuja on Monday
One of the contestants, Timi alaibe had asked APC to cancel primary claimed to have been won by a former state governor and one of the aspirants, Timipre Sylva, who had insisted that he won the primary conducted about a week ago.
The primary was was said to have ended in a fiasco, after some hoodlums invaded the Samson Siasia Stadium, Yenagoa, venue of the party election, conducted by the Governor Adams Oshiomhole-led electoral committee.
The Timipre Sylva Campaign for the Bayelsa State 2015 gubernatorial election has last week dismissed media reports that that Governors Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (Sokoto) and Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun) had been drafted to join Oshiomhole for a new primary this week.
The campaign organisation, in a statement by Doifie Buokoribo, described the report as a “cruel hoax”, stressing that there was no way a fresh primary can be organised on Tuesday as it would amount to an act of “illegality.”
The Sylva campaign said, “Let us restate here that an APC candidate for the December 5, 2015 governorship election in Bayelsa State has emerged and that candidate is Chief Timipre Sylva. No amount of media manipulation can change that. This is a society of law and order.
“The latest disinformation through the media goes to show the level of desperation of some people who want the APC governorship ticket through the back door. An election was conducted, Sylva won, the whole world has seen it.
“Besides, there is no way a hopelessly compromised Oshiomhole, who has also openly displayed his bias, can be asked again to go and conduct an election in Bayelsa State. Even his masters know that will be unacceptable to Nigerians.
“Similarly, as at Saturday, 26 September 2015, Tambuwal is in far away New York attending the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) while Amosun is attending Hajj in Saudi Arabia. Are they going to conduct a virtual election?
“Despite the orchestrated lies and disinformation, the Sylva Campaign will again urge our teeming supporters to be law-abiding, peaceful but resolute. Victory is sure.”
