By Abiola Olawale
The All Progressives Congress (APC), Governorship Primary Election Committee in Ondo State has declared the Saturday exercise inconclusive.
This was made known by Governor Usman Ododo of Kogi State, who is also the Chairman of the election committee in the state.
In a statement issued by Ododo, the election was declared inconclusive to give way for the conduct of a fresh election in all the 13 Wards of Okitipupa Local Government with total validated registered members of 9,515.
The statement reads: “Having received reports of the primary election from the 203 Wards in the 18 Local Governments of Ondo State, the Primary Election Committee has decided that election will be conducted in all the 13 Wards of Okitipupa Local Government with total validated registered members of 9,515.
“We have validated reports that the exercise did not hold in the local government due to the late arrival of electoral materials and personnel as a result of logistics challenges.
“Election in Okitipupa Local Government shall be conducted at 12 noon on Sunday 21st April 2024.
“The final collation of the results will be done thereafter”, the statement said.
This comes after reports that the governorship primaries held on Saturday were reportedly met with violence and discrepancies, as some aspirants alleged that voting did not take place in most of the 203 wards.
The aspirants, who also asked the national leadership of the party to, as a matter of urgency, remove the chairman of the Electoral Committee, noted that they no longer trust in his ability to conduct a free and fair election following the current controversy trailing the exercise.
Led by Barrister Gbenga Edema, they faulted the exercise and warned that the development, if not well handled, might affect the outcome of the shadow election and the November governorship election.
Edema had said: “At the stakeholders meeting held at St. Thomas Event Centre, the secretary of that committee, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege said the collection of voting materials which include the membership register, and others will be distributed to the electoral officers whose names he announced to us in each of the 203 wards of Ondo State.
“They should come to BON Hotel to collect the materials and that accreditation will start by 10 am, to be completed by 1 p.m. while voting proper will start by 1 pm and end by 2 pm, then the announcement of the results.
“As I am talking to you now, this is 10:40. We’ve been here since 6 am, believing that our people will collect the materials. Unfortunately, at about 9:30 am, His Excellency Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo, came out to tell us that materials had been distributed. At what time? In what places? We don’t know!
“Unfortunately, for him, the returning officers and electoral officers of my ward, Mahin Ward II in Ilaje local government are here and unable to collect any material.
“What we are asking for is a credible election. So, we are asking the leadership of the party to look into this. If they’re not ready for this election, they should postpone it and the right thing should be done.”
