Okowa Floors Uduaghan’s man to win Delta governorship ticket …As Obankoro Rejects Results, Other results Emerge

By Our Correspondent

The incumbent Senator representing Delta north senatorial district at the National Assembly, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa has braved all the odds to emerge governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in the 2015 general elections in the state.

Senatoru Ifeanyi Okowa

Senator Okowa won the election with 406 votes against his closest rival, David Edevbie‎’s 299 votes, while Victor Ochei came distant third with 185 votes.

Edebvie was Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan’s candidate after he dumped Tony Obuh, a Permanent Secretary in the Government House, initially paraded as the anointed candidate.

Obuh was dumped following stories that President Jonathan would prefer an Urhobo governorship candidate to enable him get the Urhobo backing in the February election.

Enter David Edevbie, a former finance commissioner in the state and a James Ibori-Emmanuel Uduaghan loyalist.

But the aspirants from Delta North were not ready to suck in the tale, and opted for a test of strength on the field.

Senator Okowa finally emerged winner of the primary election that lasted well into Monday night and was beamed live on Africa Independent Television, AIT.

Meanwhile, Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, has congratulated Dr. Okowa who polled 406 votes to beat his closest rival, Chief David Edebvie who scored 299 votes.

Uduaghan charged Okowa to demonstrate the spirit of sportsmanship by quickly extending a hand of fellowship to other contestants.

He also called on the other aspirants to note that the exercise was a family contest where there was no winner no loser, urging them to join hands with Okowa in positioning the party for victory at the general elections.

“I must also at this juncture commend the peaceful disposition displayed by all aspirants before and during the primaries. This is a testament to our peace and security agenda in the state,” he said.

In Lagos State, Mr. Olujimi Agbaje scored 434 votes to defeat others including Ambassador Musiliu Obanikoro who got 345 ballots but rejected the result.

Those who picked the tickets to contest the February polls were either sitting governors seeking a second term in office or aspirants sponsored and backed by outgoing state helmsmen, who were given the nod by the party to choose their successors.

Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo emerged as the candidate in Gombe State.

Former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’aba, presided over the election, conducted by the five-man panel from the PDP headquarters, for which 504 delegates cleared.

Indeed, early signals that there would be no upsets came from Rivers State where former Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, picked the ticket with a landslide over his opponents.

Wike, a former chairman of Obiakpor local government and a political opponent of Rivers Governor Chibuike Amaechi, is reportedly backed by the wife of the president, Dame Patience Jonathan.

Then followed Akwa Ibom, where the calculation of votes invoked memories of the PDP national convention to pick its presidential candidate in the 2003 elections.

At that time, former Foreign Affairs Minister, Chief Tom Ikimi, who was the returning officer for the convention, counted aloud the votes, which mostly went to President Olusegun Obasanjo, who was seeking a second term.

For the votes that went to the former president, Ikimi would shout, ‘Obasanjo’, ‘Obasanjo’ and ‘Obasanjo.’

Similarly at the PDP governorship primaries in Uyo, the name of ‘Udom Emmanuel’ or ‘Udom Gabriel Emmanuel’ or ‘Emmanuel Udom’ or simply ‘Udom’ rang out intermittently, as the returning officer tallied the votes from each local government area.

Other aspirants were said to have walked out in protest.

Emmanuel is the candidate of outgoing Governor Godswill Akpabio, who himself, has picked the ticket for a senatorial seat in the general elections.

In Umuahia, Abia State Governor Theodore Orji’s protégée, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, secured the ticket with 487 votes to defeat eight aspirants, including former Minister of Labour and Productivity, Mr. Emeka Wogu.

Orji has also picked a senatorial ticket at the weekend.

Ebonyi State presented a few examples, where deputy governors obtained the tickets.

Thus, retiring Governor Martin Elechi’s deputy, Chief Dave Umahi, got the ticket two days after his principal became the biggest casualty in the senatorial contest.

In Kaduna State, Governor Ramalan Yero got the nod of the delegates.

In Ogun, PDP returnee, Gboyega Nasiru Isiaka, picked the ticket, defeating a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Dimeji Bankole.

Isiaka polled 705 votes, while his closest opponent Kayode Amusan scored 151 votes.

There were reports of two parallel primaries in Enugu State, with Senator Ayogu Eze winning in one factional exercise.

Eze, a journalist and chairman, Senate Committee on Works, and other aspirants had kicked against the adoption of House of Representatives member Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who had the backing of outgoing Governor Sullivan Chime.

Chime had sought to replace Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, but he had to withdraw at the last minute when the heat from the national headquarters of the PDP became unbearable for him.

Thus, Ekweremadu, who seeks a third term in the upper chambers, got the leeway to pursue his ambition.

Unconfirmed reports said that a factional chairman of the party in the state, Dr Sam Onyishi was conducting another parallel primary at the Dragon Centre with his accredited delegates.

Senator Eze, Prof. Onyeke and Sam Onyishi had during the meeting with committee members condemned the list of delegates being used, saying it was not the authentic list that emerged from the November 1 ward congresses. The development paved way for the parallel primaries.

Niger State Governor Babangida Aliyu’s political grandson, Umar Nasko, triumphed, while Musa Nashuni won in Katsina State with 1,309 votes, defeating Senator Ibrahim Idah and others.

Mallam Aminu Ibrahim Ringim had 1,020 votes in Jigawa State, while Senator Teslim Folarin secured the ticket in Oyo State, beating others like former Governor Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala.

Chief Rasheed Ladoja won in Oyo State for Accord Party (AP).

The Imo State chapter of APGA produced two candidates during two parallel primaries conducted by the two factions.

At the primary election conducted by the Peter Ezeobi-led faction at Rosy Arts Theatre, Owerri, Ihenacho was declared winner with 972 votes.

Okey Eze polled 44, while Mazi Okechukwu Unegbu got three votes.

In the other congress held immediately after behind NUT building on Port Harcourt Road, Owerri, Mr. Okey Eze won with 789 votes, Mazi Okechukwu Unegbu scored 37 votes while Ihenacho got 24 votes.

Former Group Managing Director/CEO of Diamond Bank Plc, Dr Alex Otti in Umuahia emerged the APGA candidate in Abia State, polling 485 votes out of a total of 503 ballots. Mr Chikwendu Udensi scored eight votes.

In Kaduna, before the commencement of voting, three governorship aspirants, former Minister of Aviation, Mr. Felix Hassan Hyat, erstwhile Secretary to the State Government, Lawal Samaila Yakawada and Air Comodore John Ajeye (rtd) withdrew from the race.

Former Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Malam Nuhu Ribadu emerged the candidate of the PDP in a primary election held in Abuja,

polling 688 votes.

One of the aspirants in Oyo State , Seyi Makinde who had obtained a court order mandating the electoral panel to use the list obtained from the rescheduled ward congress, alongside others, including Alao-Akala, his erstwhile deputy, Taofeek Arapaja, Kehinde Olaosebikan, Dr Isaac Owolabi stayed away from the primaries.

The party leadership had in the wake of the crisis over the two ward congresses resolved to use the statutory delegates list for the governorship primary. The list is said to favour Folarin.

While Folarin polled 167 votes, Alao-Akala had two votes, Hazeem Gbolarumi who was deputy to Akala during the 11 months impeachment of Ladoja polled 12.

Meanwhile, a coalition of 17 aspirants who boycotted the primaries under the aegis of Rivers Mainstream Coalition has rejected the exercise and described it as a charade. Its spokesperson, Mr. Sotonye Ijuye-Dagogo, urged all coalition partners to wait for its next action.

Irrespective of the boycott of the party’s primary by 17 out of the 24 aspirants, Wike polled a total of 1,083 votes to defeat six other aspirants in the polls which held in Port Harcourt.

Mr. Dumbari Dimkpa came second with 21 votes, while West Ibinabo got three votes, and Emmanuel Georgewill and Senator Lee Maeba got one vote each respectively.

In Akwa Ibom State, about 21 governorship aspirants protested and staged a walk out of Akwa Ibom International Stadium venue of the PDP governorship primaries.

They alleged that the delegates list was compiled at Government House without their knowledge and that the exercise lacked transparency and was manipulated by Akpabio and the state PDP.

The aggrieved aspirants who walked out of the venue of the primaries before it commenced, included; former Deputy Governor Nsima Ekere, former Nigerian Ambassador to Russia and the Belarus, Chief Assam E. Assam (SAN), former Commissioner for Rural Development, Larry Esin, former Attorney-General and Justice Commissioner, Bassey Dan-Abia, among others.

Giving reasons from their action, the aggrieved aspirants said that they had no confidence in the process leading to the primary election. They also alleged that there was no proper accreditation of delegates even as they said that delegates in the election were fake.

In Zamfara State, the primaries were postponed till today following alleged manipulation of the delegates list by two of the three governorship aspirants.

It was gathered that a former governor, Mahmud Aliyu Shinkafi, and a member of the House of Representatives, Ibrahim Shehu Gusau, accused the state’s PDP chairman, Senator Hassan Muhammad Nasiha, of altering the lists of the delegates in favour of an aspirant, Bello Muhammad Matawalle.

In Lagos State, preparations for the primaries were disrupted and delayed yesterday following shooting at the venue earlier, which sent many scampering for safety.

For several hours, security personnel engaged hoodlums and party thugs who paraded sophisticated weapons as they chanted songs in support of their aspirants. The exercise could not commence until evening, when the 806 delegates finally entered the hall at about 3.00 p.m. while accreditation started at 3:30p.m.

One of the aspirants, Modupe Felicia Chukwunenye, withdrew later, saying “there is nothing I want to achieve that any of the other aspirants cannot achieve.”

However, chairman of the Lagos primaries committee, Tunji Shelle, dismissed as baseless and outright lie the rumour that the party planned to cancel the governorship primary and pick a consensus candidate.

This was against the backdrop of the violence that preceded the primary, as several gunshots, teargas and mobile police dogs were released to scare away hoodlums and thugs who fomented trouble. Some newsmen also sustained injuries in the ensuing chaos.

And denying the rumour that he stepped down, a former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, disclosed that he has “not been persuaded to withdraw from the race.”

“Nobody can persuade me to step down. I resigned the coveted office as Minister of State (Defence). I am here and you all can see, despite the rumours, that they have spread into the public space,” he said.

Governorship primaries results

Abia ———Okezie Ikpeazu (PDP)

Abia——–Alex Otti (APGA)

Adamawa- Nuhu Ribadu (PDP)

Akwa Ibom-Udom Emmmanuel (PDP)

Delta—— Ifeanyi Okowa (PDP)

Ebonyi—— Dave Umahi (PDP)

Enugu—— Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (PDP)

(Ayogu Eze) (PDP)

Gombe —- Dankwabo (PDP)

Imo —Emmanuel Iheanacho (APGA)

Okey Eze (APGA)