Anambra Guber: INEC clarifies position on APGA’s primary election.

• As party alleges mischief

The ruling All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) in Anambra state has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of creating unnecessary confusion by writing it a letter that appeared to void the party’s primary election, which produced Profesdor Chukwuma Soludo as its governorship candidate.

Former Chairman of APGA, Senator Victor Umeh fired the salvo at INEC on Friday when he appeared on Channels Television breakfast programme “Sunrise Daily”.

He sparred with the INEC Commissioner and Chairman, Voter Education Committee, Barrister Festus Okoye, whose clarifications on the issues the media had feasted on to arrive at their interpretation that Soludo’s nomination was void and APGA out of the race.

Speaking on the recent letter written to APGA by INEC Secretary complaining that the Commission was not informed about the conduct of Wards Election which produced the delegates for the June 23 State Congress and Primary Election that produced former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, Umeh accused INEC of mischief-making by writing such a letter to the party.

According to him: “nothing warranted INEC’s Secretary to write such letter to APGA in the first place because APGA has not breached any known law as it satisfied all the INEC requirements leading up to the primary election which produced Soludo.”

Umeh insisted that, “APGA published the notices for the Wards and State Delegate elections in two national newspapers as required by INEC Election Guidelines hence it’s strange for the Commission’s Secretary to turn around to claim the party did not give it notice to monitor the internal selection process.”

Umeh argued that the Supreme Court of Nigeria had since ruled that political parties were at liberty to inform or give INEC notice to monitor their primaries, adding that the apex court of the country also ruled that any defaulting party could pay a fine of N500,000 only to the Commission.

Umeh therefore demanded INEC to withdraw the vexed letter, saying that “such letter will give mischievous people the opportunity to embark on frivolous litigations against APGA.”

But INEC’s Okoye said the Commission was satisfied with the APGA June 23 Delegate State Congress and Primary Election where Soludo emerged as APGA  Governorship Candidate, arguing that the party met all the requirements by giving INEC notice to monitor the primary in Awka, capital of Anambra state.

According to him: “INEC is satisfied with the Delegate State Congress but we also reminded the party that we are not aware how the Ward elections were conducted because INEC does not know about it as the Commission was not informed of the Ward elections which produced the Delegates for the State Congress.”