In a twist to the unfolding political drama in Edo State, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced the primary election held on Saturday as inconclusive.
This decision comes in the wake of a contentious primary that saw three different candidates being proclaimed as winners, leading to confusion and unrest within the party ranks.
The primary election, marred by disputes, initially had a member of the House of Representatives, Dennis Idahosa, declared the winner by Governor Hope Uzodimma, the chairman of the APC Primary Election Committee, at the Protea Hotel in Benin.
In a parallel development, Senator Monday Okpebholo was announced as the victor at a separate event held at the residence of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, also in Benin City.
Adding to the complexity, Ojo Babatunde, speaking on behalf of local government returning officers, later proclaimed Anamero Sunday Dekeri, another House of Representatives member, as the winner of the contentious poll.
The conflicting declarations led to unrest, with protests erupting on Monday as disgruntled youths and women converged on the party’s secretariat, forcefully expelling members of the State Working Committee led by Jarret Tenabe.
Amidst the chaos, Anamero Sunday Dekeri escalated the situation by visiting the party’s national secretariat, where he sought a certificate of return from Abdullahi Ganduje, the national chairman of the APC.
Dekeri asserted that he had secured the highest number of votes in Saturday’s tumultuous primary.
Responding to the crisis, Ganduje called for an urgent meeting of the National Working Committee (NWC) on Tuesday night, aiming to address the discord and chart a path forward for the party in Edo State.
The APC National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, while addressing newsmen after the meeting said, “The NWC resolves that the Edo State governorship primary election has not been completed and has now fixed Thursday, February 22, 2024 for the completion of the APC primary election process.”
He however, declined to answer questions after reading the short text of the press conference.
