Politics

LP seeks cancellation of Imo governorship poll, demands fresh election

Published

8 months ago

August 15, 2024

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The leadership of the Labour Party has headed for the Supreme Court to seek the nullification of the November 11 Imo Governorship poll after its appeal for a fresh election was thrown out by the appeal court.

The opposition party said it perceived bias in the judgments despite presenting evidence to back its claim of over-voting in the election that returned Governor Hope Uzodimma to office.

The National Publicity Secretary of LP, Obiora Ifoh, disclosed this at a press conference held in Abuja on Monday.

The Independent National Electoral Commission had declared Uzodimma of the All Progressives Congress as the winner of the contentious poll.

The APC candidate swept all the 27 local governments in the state after he polled 540,308 votes to beat Samuel Anyanwu of the Peoples Democratic Party and Labour Party’s Athan Achonu who scored 71,503 votes and 64,081 votes respectively.

But Achonu and the party’s leadership rejected the result, alleging that the total number of voters did not match the figures reeled out by the electoral umpire.

Addressing journalists in Abuja, Ifoh argued that despite making formal requests to review the over 4,000 BVAS, which were essential to prove their case of electoral malpractice, the petitioners encountered deliberate delays and obstructions.

According to him, only 30 BVAS units were eventually released for inspection thereby frustrating their case.

He said, “The Supreme Court is expected to act decisively and uphold the electoral laws. Given the clear evidence of over-voting, we expect the court to cancel the flawed election and mandate a fresh governorship election in Imo state. This action is essential to restore public trust and uphold the integrity of the judicial system.

“The issue at hand is clear. The total number of certified accredited voters for the November 2023 governorship election, as certified by INEC, was just over 500,000. However, the total votes counted, which was used to declare the candidate of APC winner exceeded 700,000, resulting in an over-voting discrepancy of more than 200,000.

“We had raised this issue during the election as we had clear evidence of abuse of electoral practices including falsification and mutilation of result sheets, harassment of the Labour Party’s agents, snatching of ballot boxes and open vote buying. According to Section 53 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), any election marred by over-voting should be cancelled.

“This provision is unambiguous and does not leave room for alternative interpretations. Regrettably, despite the overwhelming evidence of over-voting, both the election tribunal and the appeal court failed to apply this clear legal standard.

The situation is eerily reminiscent of the Supreme Court’s controversial decision in 2020, where a similar issue of over-voting was overlooked, leading to the installation of a candidate who had initially placed third.”

Politics

‘Tinubu’s administration has no achievements since inception’ – Atiku

Published

3 hours ago

April 26, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

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Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, has knocked the administration of President Bola Tinubu for its economic policies, saying it has recorded no achievement since its inception.

Atiku, who stated this in a statement on his official X handle, said Tinubu’s administration has no achievements to stand on and no credible record to defend, adding that its only strategy is chaos and division.

“Because that’s the last refuge of the incompetent. And make no mistake— an incompetent captain does not only wreck his ship; he endangers the lives of everyone on board,” he wrote.

The 2023 PDP presidential candidate’s outburst comes after recent high profile defections from the opposition party.

Ekwutosblog reports that the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, and the immediate past governor of the state, Ifeanyi Okowa, on Wednesday left the Peoples Democratic Party for the ruling All Progressives Congress.

In the same vein, a member of the House of Representatives, Oluwole Oke, resigned from the PDP and joined the APC on the same day.

While commenting on the next presidential election, Atiku said results would not be determined by political alliances, but by common goals.

“Let us be clear: the coming political battle is not APC versus PDP, or LP versus APC. It is Nigerians versus an administration that has plunged the nation into untold suffering. The economy is in freefall. Inflation is choking the masses. Jobs are vanishing. Youth restiveness is surging to terrifying levels. Nigerians are not just tired — they are angry, and rightfully so.

“This moment is about collective survival. The real enemy is not one another — it is the Tinubu administration’s abysmal failure. We must reject every attempt to distract us with ethnic, regional, or religious sentiments. These are tools of manipulation, designed to divide and conquer, used by those with nothing else to offer,” he added.

The former Vice-President pointed out that the need to speak out on the state of the economy was engineered by calls from concerned Nigerians.

Politics

Kwankwaso: NNPP considering three options – Ladipo Johnson

Published

6 hours ago

April 26, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

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Ladipo Johnson, the spokesperson for the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, has said the party is considering three possibilities ahead of 2027 presidential election.

Johnson said the NNPP was considering joining forces with the APC, the coalition of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar or standing on its own in 2027.

This comes amid defections from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the APC.

Atiku recently announced the formation of a coalition alongside his former counterpart of Labour Party, Peter Obi; ex-Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai and some other politicians.

The former PDP presidential candidate, had his ex-running mate, Ifeanyi Okowa defecting to the APC.

Also, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State also dumped the opposition party to the APC.

Amid these defections, the House of Representatives member from Ideato Federal constituency of Imo State, Ikenga Ugochinyere, had claimed that two more state governors and 40 PDP lawmakers will soon defect.

Ugochinyere urged the PDP’s National Working Committee, NWC, to urgently take steps towards addressing the imminent danger.

He disclosed this while addressing PDP members in Akokwa area of Imo State on Friday

However, Johnson, in a statement said: “Well, so far, what I’ll say is this: in the NNPP, we tend to, at least from our own history as the Kwankwasiyya movement, wait till midterm.

“May 29th will be the midterm for this administration. It will be two years down, and two years to go. That is when we believe that proper politicking will commence.

“So, yes, we are talking, and we’ve been talking. But you’ll recall that at that time, I told you I didn’t want to mention specifically the groups or persons or movements that are in conversation with us. That is still the position now.

“You’ll recall that there have been many publications in newspapers and online, insinuating that Senator Kwankwaso is moving to the APC, that it is imminent and all that. That is just the nature of the game. Some people are pressing or pushing that narrative for their selfish reasons.

“But the bottom line is that very soon, they will begin to hear from us. We will tell our supporters what we are doing.

“There are basically three cards on the table: either we remain in the NNPP and continue with those who joined us all the way or we form some sort of coalition with Atiku, others; or we form an alliance with the ruling party. I

“I am not saying any of these is the case now. But these are the three basic options that could happen.”

Politics

I never met Uzodinma to negotiate APC detection – Otti

Published

6 hours ago

April 26, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

Alex Otti

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Abia State government says that Governor Alex Otti did not hold any meeting with Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma for Otti to join the All Progressive Congress, APC, ahead of the 2027 polls.

A statement on Saturday signed by Ferdinand Ekeoma, Special Adviser to Governor Otti on Media and Publicity, described the defection rumour as false, baseless and unfounded and should be disregarded.

According to Abia State government, Governor Alex Otti and a few of his colleagues on Thursday, joined Governor Uzodinma to attend the birthday celebration of his twin daughters after the National Economic Council meeting, saying that the event had nothing to do with politics.

Ekeoma said that though Otti’s popularity and credentials as the Governor of Abia State may attract admiration and permutations from interested parties, “Governor Otti’s political decisions, especially those that would have huge impact and far-reaching consequences on Abians, would at all times be taken in conjunction with majority of Abians and his allies”.

He noted that decisions that would be taken by the Governor must be justified and be seen to be in the overriding interest of Abia people, even as he advised Abia people not to allow discussions about the gathering momentum of 2027 politics to distract good governance in the State.

“Finally, we wish to emphatically state that Governor Otti remains a member of the Labour Party and is presently not planning or discussing with anyone to defect to the APC or any other party for that matter as falsely alleged”, the statement concluded.